After All This Time
by noblecrescent
Summary: Change is inevitable. Clara understands but the Doctor & Minerva are becoming far too different now, at least that's how she sees it. Add to that a mysterious Scottish woman trying to reveal a 'truth' about Minerva to the Doctor & everything just gets worse. Realizing you've changed is never easy, & Missy will make sure Minerva & the Doctor feel the pain. [6th in Monsoon seasons]
1. Here We Go Again

**Author's Note:** _Welcome to the sixth installment of my OC - Minerva's - story with the Doctor (now the 12th). This story will cover the entire 8th season of Doctor Who, of course with my rewrites. Fair warning I do disregard some show details to make it work for my story! As always, I recommend to any new readers that you go back and read the previous five stories in order to learn and understand who Minerva is - especially since this story will now have Missy/Master who does have some history with Minerva. You don't have to if you don't want to, but it is suggested! All stories remain on my story list beginning with Next Stop Everywhere._

 _The story's theme song is: **All I Need** by Foxes._

* * *

In Victorian London, one could await for anything to happen. However, when there was a monstrous dinosaur that vomited up a blue time travelling machine...things were sure to get a little extra terrestrial. Madame Vastra - the Silurian - Jenny Flint - a human and Vastra's wife - and their trusted companion Strax - the Sontaran - were the first ones and only ones to get a closer look at this spectacle. They could only imagine what kind of trouble the Doctor and Minerva had gotten into now. Although, the dinosaur bit was a new one.

Strax marched up to the TARDIS and knocked on it several times as he politely said, "Hello? Exit the box, and surrender to the glory of the Sontaran Empire."

There was a pop and Liv Oswald, adoptive, human sister to Minerva, and practically to Clara Oswald, appeared on one side of the trio. "Whatever he says, the dinosaur was _not_ my fault!" She was able to say, frantically, before the TARDIS door opened up.

The Doctor stuck his head out, looking irritated for the knock. "Shush!" he said before shutting the door again.

The brief glimpse of the new man left the Victorian trio bewildered.

"Doctor?" Strax called.

The Doctor opened the door again, still grumpy looking. "I said shush! I was in the middle of telling my sister-in-law how she got us chased by a giant dinosaur!"

Liv nearly lost it and yelled. "It wasn't my fault, dammit!"

The Doctor looked pretty lost with her presence there. "Where did you go? I wasn't finished, you know."

"But _I_ was," she snapped.

"Hmph," the Doctor looked down at Strax, seeming as he had only just taken Strax in. "Sleepy?"

Strax, confused, stepped back. "Sir?"

"Bashful? Sneezy?" the Doctor continued to guess, or play maybe. He stepped out of the TARDIS then. "Dopey? Grumpy!" He then saw Vastra and Jenny, completely missing their bemusement with him while he ran up to them. "Oh, you two! The green one...and the not-green one. Or it could be the other way round, I mustn't prejudge! Oh, you remember, er…" he snapped his fingers while pointing at Liv. "...thingy, the, er, one of the not-me's, and the not-wife one, the asking-questions one? Names - not my area."

Liv was less than amused. "This regeneration really fried what was left of that brain."

"Can you not insult my husband, please?" requested a new voice. All eyes turned to the TARDIS where Clara was helping an older, taller woman with long, albeit messy from the circumstances, dark brown hair come out.

The Doctor may have been lost in all other subjects but he definitely knew who she was. "The wife!" he gestured to her happily. "Minerva!"

"My husband," Minerva mimicked him, "The one that needs to take a breath. Please."

"What's wrong with you?" Clara asked for the tenth time after his regeneration. She didn't understand why he was acting loopier than usual.

"Oi, big man, shut it!" The Doctor shouted to the dinosaur still roaring about. "Oh, you've got a dinosaur too! Big woman, sorry."

"Vastra, the regeneration," Minerva swallowed hard, beginning to feel a little dizzy even with Clara's support, "It's not gone quite well with him. It's affecting me through the linkage."

It was true. The last time she had changed through the Moontsay linkage it had been quick and painless, although rowdy. This time, she could still feel some queasiness in her stomach. Some of her memories failed to show up in her mind, and she couldn't remember the brunette girl standing beside her.

"Something's definitely wrong," Clara agreed with Minerva, missing Minerva's odd looks on her. She was well aware Minerva wasn't remembering her and, for the sake of time, decided not to push it.

The Doctor had heard Clara's words and was not pleased. "Wrong? What's gone wrong? Have you regenerated? I remember you. You're Handles! You used to be a little...a little robot head, and now you...you've really let yourself go."

Clara tilted her head, mildly offended then. Liv couldn't help snicker from her spot.

The Doctor hurried back to Vastra. "Reduce the frequency."

"I'm sorry?" the Silurian blinked, still processing all that she was seeing.

"Your sonic lanterns, turn them down. You're giving her a headache!"

"Giving who a headache?" Jenny asked.

"My lady friend!" the Doctor whirled around in the direction of the dinosaur then called out, "Just an expression, don't get any ideas. I'm married!"

"How do you know?" Strax frowned.

"Come on, Clara! You know that I speak dinosaur."

Liv then busted out with a laughter, ignoring the Doctor's ' What's so funny?' in favor of Clara's horrified face.

"He's not Clara. _I'm_ Clara!" the brunette shouted.

"You're name is Clara?" Minerva smiled softly. "That's a very nice name C...C...what was it again?"

Clara slapped a hand over her forehead, wondering which one was gonna drive her more mad.

"I have a name," Minerva continued, tilting her head and squinting her eyes, "I think it starts with a K...or a C? They both make the same sounds you know."

"Why... why are you all doing that?" the Doctor had stopped moving and was now looking from one person to another. "Darling, do you mind if I take five?"

Minerva distractedly glanced at him. "Did my name start with an E?"

The Doctor collapsed on the spot afterwards. Minerva felt something in her stomach churn and placed a hand over it.

"Em, you girl," she pointed at Clara beside her, "Do you mind if I follow my husband's lead? I don't seem to feel quite well…"

Clara was not remotely surprised Minerva fell unconscious afterwards. "What do we do?" she looked up at the rest instead.

"I don't understand, who are they?" Jenny was seriously stumped. "Where's the Doctor? Where's Minerva?"

"They are them," Liv stepped over the Doctor and walked back to them. "That's the Doctor and Minerva."

Vastra raised her nonexistent eyebrows at the sight of the two new aliens. "Well then, here we go again."

~ 0 ~

Getting the Doctor and Minerva back to Vastra's was already difficult enough when they were both unconscious, but now that the Doctor was wide awake and rambling and pacing around...well, that was a much bigger problem.

Dressed in a nightshirt, the Time Lord paced back and forth inside a bedroom where Vastra remained on watch - Minerva was wide awake as well, but she seemed a little more put together than earlier.

"It's simply misunderstandable to me. I don't know what it is," the Doctor marched up to the door and opened it up, briefly looking out into the hallway before returning. Behind him came Clara and Jenny. "Who invented this room?"

Minerva, who calmly sat on one side of the bed, followed him with her new, hazel-green eyes. "Dear, I think we have one at home." But, looking unsure of her words, she leaned to one side where Liv was. "We do have one right?"

"Yes," her blonde sister nodded her head.

"But it doesn't make sense," the Doctor spoke louder. "Look, it's only got a bed in it. Why is there only a bed in it?"

"Because it's a bed- _room_ , it's for sleeping in," Clara said promptly, then glanced one more time at it before adding, "...and...other things."

"Dear, come sit with me, please?" Minerva reached out to him with a hand. "I don't feel good."

The Doctor rushed to her, crawling through the empty side of the bed and taking her hand. "You certainly don't look good," he eyed her suspiciously, his bluntness coming as a surprise to her.

"Oh, he's even more blunt," Minerva said, not so happy. "Goodie."

"He's always been like that," Clara pointed out. "He just covered it up to you."

"Why do you keep talking like that?" the Doctor snapped. "What's gone wrong with your accent?"

"Dear," Minerva turned his head with her free hand, admiring his new soft blue eyes. "There is nothing wrong with her accent."

"You sound different too, what is that? Have you developed a fault!?" the Doctor was far more concerned with Minerva's accent despite the fact she was still sounding American.

Minerva smiled warmly. "I am just fine, Martian. But...do you think I can see your mind for a bit?"

The Doctor looked at her suspiciously, but did not refuse. "Why would you want to do that?"

"I can't remember some things," she made a gesture with her hands for him to lean closer to her. She then whispered, "I can't remember that girl over there," she discreetly made eyes for Clara.

"Oh," the Doctor pretended to be secretly talking when in reality he was talking just as loud as before. "Well, go ahead, darling!"

Minerva touched his temples and the two shared a brief moment of their telepathic link before the Doctor fell back, unconscious. Minerva sighed and glanced at the others. "I'm glad that worked, I love him but he needs his rest."

"Minerva, what's going on?" Liv walked over, bending slightly to meet Minerva's look. Through those new eyes of hers Liv could see that the old Minerva was slowly coming but there were still bits of haziness in them.

"I suspect the new regeneration cycle is doing this to him," Minerva glanced at the Doctor, now being attended to by Jenny and Vastra. "I can feel it through my mind - it makes me feel woozy."

"But I don't get it, you both regenerated but there was nothing wrong with you," Clara came to stand by Liv.

"No Clara, only the Doctor regenerated. My Moontsay genes activate this sort of...protection link between us, but because the Doctor's not Moontsay the link works in a different way." Minerva pushed herself to sit more upright, against the bed headboard. "Each time he regenerates, my link thinks that because he's dying I'm dying so it alters my body. It doesn't really give me a body because it's not a regeneration. It just changes who I am. It heals what is already healed, basically."

"Confusing," Clara declared after a moment of thinking. "But so incredibly you." Minerva nodded, and Clara took a seat on the end of the bed. "So, it's still you then. Like...your still number…?"

"Technically speaking, I've only regenerated twice. This is my third incarnation, but second appearance change," Minerva explained as simple as possible because she understood it could be rather confusing. "Number 13 over here," she pointed then at the Doctor. "And what a wonky one it is."

"Minerva, you should rest," Vastra suggested and began ushering Jenny and the others to the door.

"What I would like is to see my son, Vastra," Minerva eyed her sharply, for ever since they arrived Minerva had been asking for their son, Elias, to be brought back from the Monsoon yet no one seemed to want to comply.

"I wouldn't want Elias to see his parents in such a state," Vastra stopped by the door. "He might get scared."

The flash of pain was clear to those still in the room. "You think he would be afraid of us?" Minerva asked quietly. "Because we changed?"

Vastra shook her head. "I think Elias is a smart toddler, and he would recognize his mother and father anywhere. What I meant was he might be afraid of seeing his parents _ill_. No toddler ever wants to see their Mummy and Daddy sick."

Minerva looked back at the Doctor who remained completely unconscious. Clara reached for Minerva's hand and gave her a soft pat. "Maybe we can wait just a bit, until the Doctor's a little better," she suggested.

"I guess…" Minerva mumbled, her saddened eyes remaining on the Doctor. It had been centuries since she last saw Elias, and her heart continued aching with every minute, but perhaps Vastra's words had some truth in them. Elias had some knowledge that his parents were susceptible to change completely, but he was only a year and a half now...he wouldn't be able to understand completely. Plus, with the Doctor going out of his usual character, Elias might indeed get frightened that his father was sick.

"That dinosaur doesn't seem very happy," Liv walked over to the open window where they could see the dinosaur from a distance still roaring.  
"What's wrong with it?" Clara glanced Liv's way.

"Well, you try being pulled from your era into a whole new world where there are no more of your kind," Minerva challenged, pushing herself back down to lie on her pillow.

Clara turned her head fast, her hair swinging with her. "I didn't know you spoke dinosaur."

"I don't," Minerva hummed, snuggling to her pillow. "It's just common sense."

"Well," Clara made a face, mildly offended. But Minerva had already closed her eyes to sleep.

Deciding it was best to leave the two aliens to rest, Clara and Liv walked out of the room.

"Are they going to get better?" Clara whispered to Liv as they walked away from the room.

"Yes, it's quite usual for the Doctor to react this way," Liv sighed. "Each regeneration is a lottery."

"I don't understand something," Clara stopped at a turn of the hallway. "If this is a new 'regeneration' and the Doctor basically healed himself...why'd he get that face? Why's it got lines on it? It's brand-new, isn't it? How can his hair be all gray? He only just got it. Even Minerva's got some little lines too!"

"Because, like I said, regeneration is at random," Liv repeated. "The Doctor can't exactly choose what comes next - if he could, he would've been ginger ages ago. And the Moontsay linkage caters to the Doctor's regeneration styles, unfortunately, because of their different species problems. If the Doctor gets an older incarnation, the linkage is more likely to give Minerva an older appearance as well."

"Poetic, I guess," Clara thought but shook her head. "I just...I just don't want them to do old people stuff."

"Old people stuff?" Liv raised her eyebrows, confused.

"You know, like, my grandmother - she rarely leaves her home now. Is that how the Doctor is going to be now? And Minerva?"

Liv couldn't help snort. "Oh Clara!"

"I'm just confused!" Clara exclaimed, slapping her hands to her face.

"The Doctor will continue being the Doctor, as will Minerva. Their appearances have nothing to do with how they act," Liv slung an arm over Clara's shoulders and led them down the remainder of the hallway.

They re-met with Vastra and Jenny, where they were immediately asked for the story behind the Doctor's sudden regeneration. Clara still being overwhelmingly confused left Liv to explain.

"And then-" Liv turned on her heel, continuing her pacing in Vastra's green plant room, "-we got swallowed by a big dinosaur. Although you probably noticed that one."

"How did it happen?" Jenny asked as she poured tea into two cups.

"Well," Liv swayed her head, "The Doctor was acting crazy - more than his usual anyways - and started pushing buttons here and there. Poor Minerva was trying to deal with the linkage so the poor TARDIS went haywire. I suppose it was the same as when the Doctor regenerated the last time and landed in Amelia's garden."

"I tried helping," Clara added, hoping to sound just a little useful in the story. "Turns out there is still far more to learn."

"With those two, of course," Vastra leaned back on her chair. "Or did you think you already knew them so well?'

"Honestly, no," Clara sighed, her face changing as she came to realize how little she actually knew of the Doctor and Minerva. "They never tell me anything."

"Of course, you must remember you are only the companion," Vastra said without meaning to sound rude. For her, it was simply a fact.

To Liv however, it was offensive. "Clara is not just an companion. Sure, my sister had refused to grow close to Clara but that was because she thought Clara was hiding a secret - me. Now that they know about me, I know Minerva feels an affection for Clara different than the rest of their companions. Each companion gives something unique to Minerva and the Doctor, just as their affection back. Do not ever tell me, nor Clara, that she is only _just_ the companion."

Clara was smiling so widely at Liv that perhaps with a little more width her face would've cracked. She was absolutely touched to hear Liv think this of her, to go to great extents just to defend her. Meanwhile, Vastra was wearing a more amused face rather than shameful. She had come to learn that Olivia Souza - Liv Oswald - came with her attitude, despite her deceased status.

"You must admit that Miss Oswald does not know even a quarter of the Doctor," she finally spoke after Liv's scold. "As do you."

"Of course," Liv shrugged, crossing her arms. "It's impossible."

"And even more so when he...he reg...reg…" Clara paused, trying to remember the name.

"He's basically renewed himself," Jenny came by with the tea cups.

"Renewed?" Clara scoffed as she took her cup graciously. "But how can he be 'renewed' when his face has got wrinkles?"

"Did you think he was young in the first place?" Vastra was now casting her the amused look.

"He looked young," Clara responded as if that was the entire basis of her thoughts.

Vastra laughed and thanked Jenny for the tea in the middle. "My dear, the Doctor has walked this universe for centuries untold, he has seen stars fall to dust."

"Then why did he have such a young face?" inquired Clara, genuinely curious of the matter.

"I wear a veil as he wore a face - for the same reason," Vastra tried to get Clara to learn the answer on her own.

But Clara wasn't understanding. She leaned forwards on her chair. "What reason?"

"The oldest reason there is for anything... to be accepted."

Clara blinked, in the beginning not understanding the reason. She glanced at Liv who was just shaking her head.

"But...but what for?"

"For me, primarily," came the new voice that now belonged to Minerva. She stood at the threshold, dressed in a night gown as well. Her face no longer wore that dazed expression it did upon first arriving. "My Doctor has always had this idea that I would only love him so long as he wore a pretty young face."

"Minerva, you shouldn't be up," Liv hurried up to her sister and helped her walk towards an empty chair in the conservatory room.

"I feel better now, trust me. Where was I?" Minerva looked at Clara with a soft smile. Now that Clara was getting a better look at the new woman, she swore she saw a much more motherly face. "I suspect Vastra was trying to give you a lesson about regeneration - thanks Vastra."

"Of course, Minerva," Vastra took a sip of her tea.

"You don't actually think I'm...shallow, do you?" Clara was afraid to ask.

"No, but you have to understand. The last time the Doctor regenerated in the presence of a companion - she asked him to change back." Clara's eyes widened, already able to understand even more why the Doctor would be clingy to his young face. Minerva nodded, confirming she had actually said that. "Before the Doctor and I met on Earth, he would regenerate freely. He and I could be nothing beyond friends, and as an effort to keep it that way he always went for the older looks. To say, his first incarnation he let himself grow old - a full set of white hair - just so that the young princess of the Silver Monsoon would hopefully see nothing but an old man."

"Idiot," Liv tried her best not to laugh.

"Wasn't he?" Minerva smiled dreamily. "I loved him no matter what but apparently the message was never clear. Afterwards, he stayed relatively older for the same reason. It was after his ninth incarnation that he started leaning for the young side. I won't lie and say I didn't love it. Course I did - he was hot," she smirked. "But his young face was not what I fell in love with. He's yet to realize that. His young face has disappeared and now the veil has lifted for those who never saw the true Doctor. I know he trusts me, but he is just a man - and he is scared."

"But...but he shouldn't be," Clara said slowly. "B-because, because you are his wife, you've been so for centuries. He should know you would love him no matter what he looked like."

"I'll remind him, believe me," Minerva nodded. "But how about you?"

"Me?"

"Will you still love him?"

Clara slowly smiled. "Does the Doctor hate boring?"

Minerva laughed. "Clever answer, Clara!"

Their laughter was cut short by a loud upset roar of the dinosaur. Vastra immediately rose from her chair and ordered for Strax to bring round the carriage. When Minerva made to accompany them, Vastra told her to go back and rest.

"I said I'm fine! Hand me a coat!" Minerva pointed at Liv, practically warning her not to defy. In the end, it was only Jenny who listened and retrieved one of Vastra's coats. "Honestly, acting like I'm the one that regenerated," Minerva made sure to scold them all as they headed for the carriage.

"You sure she didn't change just a tiny bit?" Clara whispered to Liv as they walked after her. "Seems a lot more...scoldy…"

"I heard that!" Minerva's boom made her wince. "Now get in the carriage, Clara!"

Deciding not to further irritate her, Clara scurried into the carriage. Before Minerva closed the carriage, Liv walked up to her and asked of the Doctor.

"Don't you think we should wake him up?"

"I have a funny feeling he's already up," Minerva shook her head. She had begun feeling the traces of their telepathic connection as it slowly re-set itself. He was up and awake, moving, and she was pretty sure where to.

As the carriage reached the Thames river, the smell of fire filled everyone's nostrils. So, when they exited the carriage and saw the still-burning remains of the dinosaur no one was surprised.

"But that's the Doctor!" Clara gasped at the sight of the Time Lord not too far from where they stood. "What's he doing there?"

"Oh c'mon, there's trouble, where else would he be?" Minerva walked up and observed her husband.

"She was scared. She was scared and alone," he was clearly feeling the guilt for the dinosaur's demise. "I brought her here and look what they did."

"Who or what could have done this thing?" Vastra asked, not intending on receiving such a snappish answer from the Doctor. "I'm sorry?"

"No. That is not the question," he looked up at them. "That is not where we start."

"The question is how. The flesh itself has been combusted…" Strax began when he was also shot down rather rudely.

"No, no, shut up! What do you all have for brains - pudding? Look at you. Why can't I meet a decent species? Planet of the pudding-brains!"

"I don't quite care for that insult," Minerva leaned over the railing, sending him a rather threatening look. But, it just seemed to fly over his head.

"For the love of God-" Liv appeared beside him, almost ready to see what insult he had for her now, "-what the hell is the question?"

"A dinosaur is burning in the heart of London. Nothing left but smoke and flame. The question is... have there been any similar murders?" the Doctor glanced up at Vastra, figuring if anyone would know the answer it would be her.

And sure enough, Vastra gasped. "Yes! Yes, by the Goddess, there have!"

The Doctor would have paid more attention if it had not been for the crowd of people forming at the embarkment. "Look at them all - gawking!" It was true. Everyone was excitedly discussing what they were seeing, but the Doctor saw more than anyone else. "

"Question two. If all the pudding-brains are gawking... then what is he?" he pointed to a man seemingly uninterested in the spectacle as he walked away.

"Ooh, one guy, out of the entire crowd, that doesn't look remotely interested in the big dinosaur burning to death?" Minerva tilted her head, propping an elbow on the rail to rest her cheek on her hand. "I smell suspect!"

"You know what I see?" Liv gave a big shout right around the same time a great big splash noise occurred. "Your husband taking a swim!"

The Doctor had dove into the river wihtout so much as a warning. Minerva, clearly taken by surprise, watched and stuttered to give him a sharp call back.

"D-Doctor! You...you come b-back! I said come back! Doctor! I said to - oh forget it he's not coming back," she shook her head and instead called to Liv.

"Liv, please just...just go with him?"

"Yeah, alright," Liv turned in the direction the Doctor was swimming in and vanished.

"And what are we gonna do?" Clara asked Minerva as the dark-haired woman turned around.

"Same thing as the Doctor - but cleaner. Follow the case," she shrugged and made way for the carriage.

There seem to be no question of who was in charge at the house from then on. Arriving back at the house, Liv was waiting for them at the doorway, making herself only visible to the group.

"Vastra, I hope you don't mind, but I'm going to need a shower and then a proper change," Minerva announced the moment they got off the carriage. "Liv?"

"Your husband is a...nutcase!" Liv shivered. "Currently, he's debating on going through a sewer."

Minerva crinkled her nose. "Eugh. Don't let him."

"Oh, yeah, cos that hadn't crossed my mind. What's wrong with him? Why's he...so much weirder this time?" Liv sighed. She understood that regeneration caused everything to go topsy-turvy for a while but this was getting to be too much.

"Regeneration, what more can I say?" Minerva shrugged. "Just go and make sure he doesn't get himself into trouble, please?"

"Fine," Liv groaned and vanished again.

Minerva then continued her way for the house, but not before calling out to the rest one more time. "And, for the love of God, someone get me a damn picture of my son!"

Clara shook her head as the woman entered the house. "Are you sure it didn't affect her too?"

Vastra assured her not, and they made their way into the house. As much as they wanted to help and find the Doctor along the way, a dark night was no setting for an investigation. They would have to sleep the night through and start anew on the next morning.

Clara woke up to find a familiar ramble coming from the next room down the hall. She got out of bed and put on a night cover over her Victorian nightdress and headed for the door. Liv had yet to reappear, having spent the entire night looking after the Doctor. She tiptoed down the hallway and stopped in front of the bedroom door belonging to Minerva. She knocked two times on the door and heard a 'come in' somewhere along Minerva's ramble.

When she entered the room, she was surprised to find Minerva already up and dressed for a day in Victorian London. She wore a deep midnight dress with long checkered long sleeves. Minerva was tugging a coat more down and looking at herself in a mirror.

"Good morning, Clara. How did you sleep?"

"U-um, good, good," Clara quietly walked further inside the room, noticing a Victorian dress sprawled on the bed. "You?"

"Not a bit," Minerva said casually, turning around with a familiar beaming smile. "If my Martian's not there I can't exactly sleep - not to mention the fact my son is yet to be in my arms."

"You miss him, don't you?" Clara asked sadly.

"I miss both of them," Minerva took in a deep breath. "Time was, I used to be an only child with the world basically revolving around me. Now I can't find myself unless I have my husband on one side and my son on the other. I stopped being just 'Minerva' a long time ago. On my account it will always be 'Minerva, the Doctor, and Elias'."

Clara could notice the fidget in Minerva's stance and smiled a little wider. "So, what can I do to help all this speed up so we can get you back on the Monsoon?"

"For starters, you can get dressed. I took delivery of finding you a nice dress," Minerva walked back to the bed. "Originally, Jenny bought it for me but…" she chuckled, "I'm not exactly young looking anymore. I thought it was better suited for you."

"But you're not old," Clara frowned. "And, sure, you're not as young as before but...that doesn't really matter to you right? It's not like the Doctor can say anything."

Minerva laughed softly, shaking her head. She put her hand on her hips. "Clara, I'm not sad I'm not a pretty young face anymore. I don't care," she shrugged.

"Oh...good," Clara said after a moment, unable to come up with other things to say.

Minerva continued smiling. "I'm fine, the only thing I don't think I would adjust well to is, well, my hair," she pointed at lengthy dark hair. Now it was Clara's turn to laugh. "I love my long hair. It's...like a part of me. It would take a long time to get used to that."

Clara chuckled. "I bet it would."

"Minerva!" they suddenly heard Liv's whining call. They turned to find the blonde in the room wearing a frantic expression on her face. "The Doctor's looking through the trash now!"

"Wouldn't be the first time," Minerva said, completely unconcerned.

Liv's face was comical with disbelief. " _Who_ did you marry!?"

The wide smile on Minerva's face said all her emotions at the time. "I know, isn't he wonderful?"

Liv let her head hang, and quietly said, "I'm gonna go stop him from eating a banana peel."

"Oh, please do, those give him bad breath," Minerva laughed as Liv disappeared again.

It was hard not to laugh at her poor imaginary friend while getting dressed for the day. Clara had found the red dress definitely looked wonderful. Minerva even helped her do Clara's hair, while simultaneously deciding to leave her own loose with just two clips pushing it out of her face. When they walked out of the room, they found Strax mopping the floor.

"Strax, how are we doing with the TARDIS?" Minerva asked instead of a formal greeting.

"Located and brought to the courtyard," he responded.

"You brought the TARDIS?" Clara beamed.

"Well of course, the TARDIS and his wife in one place? How could the Doctor resist?" Minerva smirked to herself while Clara pretended to shiver.

"I should have not asked," Clara decided to turn and leave ahead. Minerva thanked Strax and went after Clara.

On their way to the stairs they met up with Jenny who was carrying fresh laundry.

"Jenny, what are Vastra's plans for today?"

"She is slightly occupied by the Conk-Singleton forgery case. And is having the Camberwell child-poisoner for dinner…"

Clara's eyes widened. "For dinner?"

"After she's finished interrogating him. Probably best to stay out the larder. It'll get a bit noisy in there later."

"Erm…" Clara slowly glanced at Minerva, but found the woman at ease like this was just any other conversation.

"I'll tend to my husband's disappearance then," Minerva said then. "Do we have the paper?"

"Downstairs," Jenny said, already making a move to get it for them.

"It's fine, Jenny, we can take care of it. Thank you," Minerva smiled and took Clara with her downstairs.

~ 0 ~

Liv had never felt so stressed as she did right now with the child that was (still) the Doctor. And she had been imaginary friend to countless children!

The Doctor, still in a nightshirt, sifting through the trash in an alley, ignoring the fact Liv was repeatedly telling him to stop and that they should go home. She just didn't understand that he could not go home dressed the way he was! What would Minerva say? Even Elias knew better.

He was just in no condition to see Minerva yet. He needed to figure himself out first.

"What are you doing?" Liv sighed when the Doctor picked up a broken mirror from one of the bins.

He was taking a look at himself, for this was probably the first time he'd gotten a glance. He was older, definitely a lot older than his last self. He had short, gray hair and blue eyes. He had thicker eyebrows this time, probably to make up for the lack of them in his last incarnation. There were wrinkles across his face but there was something else that he couldn't quite understand from this face...

"Bitey," the Doctor said suddenly.

"Bitey?" Liv repeated, her voice implying the deep weariness she carried.

"The air... it's bitey, it's wet and bitey," the Doctor mimicked his hands in the air.

Liv rolled her eyes. "It's cold?"

"That's right. It's cold!" the Doctor snapped his fingers at her.

"Oh, so we're still doing that then?"

The Doctor ignored her genuine question and walked up to her. "I need, um... I need clothes. I need clothes, that's what I need! Minerva can't see me like this!"

"Honestly, I think my sister's so stupidly lovestruck she wouldn't care!" Liv released a big sigh then, as her words practically flung over the Doctor's head.

"Have you seen this face before?"

"What?"

"The face - have you seen it before?" the Doctor pointed at his current, mildly dirtied face.

"No, Doctor, I have not," Liv resigned to another round of irrelevant discussions.

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely."

"It's funny, because...I'm sure that I have," the Doctor went back for the mirror he left over a pile of trash. "You know, I never know where the faces come from. They just pop up. Zap! Faces like this one. Come on, look at it, have a look, come on, look, look, look!"

Liv walked over just so that he wouldn't shout for her. The Doctor pointed her to see into the mirror.

"Look, it's covered in lines, but I didn't do the frowning. Who frowned me this face? Do you ever look in the mirror and think, 'I've seen that face before'?"

"I don't know, Doctor. I just don't know," Liv looked at him struggling not to sound impatient again.

"Why this one? Why did I choose... this face?" the Doctor insisted. "It's like I'm trying to tell myself something, like I'm trying to make a point. But what is so important that I can't just tell myself what I'm thinking?"

"Er…"

"I'm not just being rhetorical here, you can join in."

Liv made a face to the side before answering. "It's just a face, Doctor, nothing to it."

Apparently it was not the answer the Doctor was looking for, judging by his new frown. "I don't like it very much. Well, it's all right up until the eyebrows. Then it just goes haywire. Look at the eyebrows! These are attack eyebrows. You could take bottle tops off with these!"

"They're just fine," Liv tried to assure but the Doctor was going on again.

"They're cross! They're crosser than the rest of my face. They're independently cross. They probably want to cede from the rest of my face and set up their own independent state of eyebrows. That's Scot…" he stopped suddenly and looked at Liv, "I am _Scottish_. I've gone Scottish?"

"Yes you are - took you long enough," Liv crossed her arms. "Yes, Doctor, Amelia Pond has left you a little influence. Boy I'd love to tell her that!"

"Oh, no, that's good. Oh-h! Oh-h!" the Doctor gasped. "It's good I'm Scottish, I'm Scottish. I am Scottish. I can complain about things, I can _really_ complain about things now! I can give Minerva a run for her money!"

"Are you saying that my sister complains too much?" Liv raised an eyebrow, finding it almost impossible not to laugh when the Doctor winced.

"No! Shut up!" he violently pointed at her. "I didn't say that! Nobody tells Minerva!"

But Liv was too far into her laugh to give a notice.

"No, wait. Shut up, shut up! Shut up!" The Doctor suddenly scurried back to the trash and began ransacking through it. "I missed something. It was here, it was here. It was... What was it I saw, what did I see?" He scored the day's current newspaper. "This is what I saw! Spontaneous combustion!"

Liv stopped laughing to take a look at the headline which read "Fourth Case of Spontaneous Combustion".

"Now what could that mean?" she asked, this time serious.

"I don't know, but I probably blame the English," the Doctor shrugged, meeting her questioning look with his own.

~ 0 ~

"Minerva, look what I found!" Clara came running up the stairs with the newspaper in hand.

"Clara, stop running," Minerva scolded while coming out of her bedroom.

"Look at this!" Clara waved the newspaper in hand.

"Was that about the spontaneous combustion case? Because I saw that one," Minerva straightened up and recited what she remembered off the newspaper. "There have been nine reported incidents of people apparently exploding in the last month...which I don't quite believe they were 'spontaneous' between you and me. Whoever killed the dinosaur had the other 9 victims on their hands. Vastra's working on deciphering its peculiarity in regards to location."

"Right, but Minerva-"

"She also mentioned something about concealment strategies in the victims-"

"-If you could just listen-"

"-I mean she was wrong, it could hide the fact the victim is missing something of it's body-"

"-it really is important - no, hold on," Clara blinked then quickly formed a crinkle face. "Did you say the victims might be missing something?"

"Vastra seems to think so, and she _is_ the one who knows more about crimes so I'm gonna give her this one. Now, what did you want to show me?"

Clara shook her head, gracious to move on. "It was in the newspaper, look-" she handed Minerva the newspaper, "It's on the personal ads section. See?" she tapped a particular advertisement for Minerva to see.

Minerva squinted her eyes to see through the dozens of advertisements. "Well - _Snowflake princess_? Since when am I the snowflake princess? He knows I hate that name."

"Why?" Clara frowned.

"Because, a very bad man gave me that name and I would rather it die along with him. But I'll let it slide because the Doctor's not himself yet," Minerva walked back for her room. "So then, he wants to finally meet me - about goddamn time!"

"I couldn't quite figure out where though," Clara followed after her.

"Lucky for you I know how to work puzzles," Minerva smiled.

~ 0 ~

Looking once more to the newspaper, Minerva led Clara down the road to the Mancini's restaurant where the Doctor apparently would be waiting for Minerva.

"Kinda fancy," Clara remarked when they stepped inside. "Sure this isn't a date? I don't wanna be a third wheel or something."

"I don't think the Doctor's head is all well for a date," Minerva observed the restaurant. She concluded at once that it was too quiet for a fancy restaurant. There was no but of conversation at any table.

The two women chose a circular booth to sit at. Minerva took a look at the menu, as did Clara, and sniffed when a foul odor crossed their area.

"Well this is a gloomy restaurant," Liv's voice made both women to find the blonde standing at the table facing the silent restaurant. The Doctor, meanwhile, had sat down beside Minerva.

Minerva was bemused by his raggedy appearance, complete with the disheveled gray hair and tattered blue coat. The bad smell was just a small addition for her. "Well, where the hell have you been, mister?" she inquired, sounding very much like she was talking to a would-be-older Elias.

"And why do you smell so bad?" Clara was coughing and covering her nose.

"And the coat? You definitely didn't have that yesterday," Minerva looked at the coat more closely.

"I do the questions!" the Doctor exclaimed. "Not you!"

Minerva raised her eyebrows. "Not today you don't. Where'd you get that coat from?"

"Er... I bought it…"

"From where?" Minerva raised an eyebrow.

"Er, a shop?"

The fact that it had come out as a question basically told everyone it was a lie. Minerva tilted her head the other way and studied him completely. "Where's the watch, Martian?"

The Doctor winced and slowly slid his hands underneath the table.

" _Martian_?" came the edgier tone of Minerva.

"Might have been a tramp...that I made a deal with."

"You made a deal to give up a beautiful watch for an ugly, smelly coat?" And yet, as Minerva made the question, it did not surprise her in the least.

"Well, I was in a hurry...and there was a terrible smell," the Doctor said as it were only logical he had to have done that.

"Okay…" Minerva said, straightening up.

They looked at each other for a full minute in silence until they both started to smile.

"Are you cross with me?" the Doctor asked her, leaning towards her. Clara was confused how Minerva could stand the smell, truthfully.

"That depends…" Minerva suddenly tried being casual and innocent, "...did you meet any pretty lady out there while you were gone?"

"Not at all," the Doctor quickly shook his head. "The only woman I met was her-" he chucked a thumb in Liv's direction, "-and she's dead."

Liv looked mildly offended at the statement. "Well, I don't quite like this overly-blunt Doctor."

Minerva bit her lip and mildly glanced at the other two women there. "Yes, that does seem to be new here, doesn't it?"

"Yes!" went both Clara and Liv, each respectfully huffing.

"Well, I'm not married to either of you, am I?" the Doctor snapped, leaving them both silent a minute.

"Settle down, children," Minerva looked at all of them sharply before landing eyes on the Doctor again. "There is one thing I didn't very much like, Martian. The name you used on the newspaper advert - You know it brings back horrible memories. I don't understand what game your little head was trying to play but I don't want to play it."

The Doctor seemed very much surprised and confused by all she was saying. In fact, it would almost appear as if he…

"I didn't post the advert."

Taken aback, Minerva glanced at Liv who nodded her head in confirmation of the Doctor's words.

"We thought _you_ put it out to catch his attention," Liv explained.

"No, but that was the Doctor's way of getting Minerva's attention," Clara argued, now suddenly unsure of her position.

"Why would I call my wife that? She hates that name," the Doctor sounded (and looked) indignant of the accusation. He reached for Minerva's hand - the latter still looking puzzled - and spoke softer, "Honestly, Minerva, you have to know that no matter what happens during my early regeneration hours I would _never_ harm you."

It was a little relief for Minerva to see him stretching himself to prove a point just for her. It meant that he was slowly readjusting from the regeneration and was on his way to becoming how he would be from now on in terms of personality and customs. She squeezed the hand in hers and nodded her head, giving the Doctor a breath to release.

"Alright," Clara spoke up to get them before they were lost in a moment, "so if neither of you sent the message...who did?"

"This could be a trap," the Doctor immediately said, gripping Minerva's hand as he looked out to the other guests.

"Something's not right," Liv turned to the tables, making herself only visible to the travelling group as she began making way towards them.

"It's a vanity trap," the Doctor mumbled, his free hand slowly making its way to his short hair. "We were so busy congratulating ourselves on solving the puzzle-" he effectively pulled a strand of hair from his head, "- you don't notice that you're sticking your head in a noose."

Clara watched in confusion as the Doctor raised the hair to the air. "What are you doing? And that isn't the only grey one, if you are, erm, having a cull."

"What, do you have a problem with the grey ones?" the Doctor shot her a look.

"If I got new hair, and it was grey, I would have a problem."

"Minerva, do you have a problem with it?" the Doctor quickly looked at his wife, momentarily anxious.

"Do you have a problem with mine considering it's not ginger anymore?" Minerva countered with.

"...no," he smiled. Minerva made a face as if to say 'see?' and looked back at Liv who was nearing a table.

"Oh, these people are...not people," Liv sucked in a breath as if she were actually in need of it. She looked up and glanced at the group. "Air disturbance? Try 'there's no air coming out of these suckers' instead."

Minerva's eyes widened and snapped her head to the Doctor in time to see him let drop his strand of hair. It fell straight down. Both aliens looked straight at the different tables, this time actually looking closer at the 'guests'.

"What? What's wrong?" Clara felt her heart begin picking up. The last thing they needed was trouble when the Doctor wasn't exactly himself.

"These people are not people," Liv was now walking through other tables. "They're not eating!" Clara turned her head, squinting her eyes to study some of the guests. She realized what Liv was saying was true - no guest actually put the food in their mouths.

"They're not breathing either," the Doctor said quieter.

"How long you think we have till they notice we're different?" Minerva whispered to him.

"Not long."

"Anything we can do?" Clara coughed, suddenly self conscious.

"How long can you hold your breath?" the Doctor asked.

"I clearly win at that contest," Liv came back with a wide smirk.

"We could just casually stroll out of here, like we've changed our minds," Minerva suggested.

"Clever Girl," the Doctor praised. He quickly tugged her down the end of the booth while Clara got out the other end. However, the moment they all got up, the rest of the diners did too. Taking one step towards the doors made all the diners turn for them.

"Sit down!" Liv exclaimed, still only visible to the group.

"Let's...just take another look at the menu, dear," Minerva said to the Doctor and so they glumly went back to sit down.

"What are they?" Clara picked up a menu and pretended to look at its contents.

"I don't know. But don't worry, because that's not the question," the Doctor discarded. "The question is what is this restaurant?"

"OK, what is this restaurant?"

"He doesn't know," Minerva gave her a look that said Clara should have already known this.

A 'waiter' had come up to their table and was expectantly waiting for them.

"Er...no sausages?" the Doctor picked up another menu, "And there's no pictures either. Do you have a children's menu?" Instead of answering the question, the waiter pulled out a wand-like device and scanned the Doctor with it. "Any specials?" the Doctor trailed the wand's device.

"Liver," the waiter said.

"I don't like liver," the Doctor crinkled his nose. "Reason why I don't let Elias try it."

Liv was intently studying the waiter from the side. "I don't...think…"

"Spleen. Brain stem. Eyes," the waiter had continued to list.

"Mm. Is there a lot of demand for those?" Clara raised an eyebrow, taking another look at the menu.

"Um, I don't think he's telling us what's on the menu…" Minerva swallowed hard, "...I think we _are_ the menu."

And just like that the waiter had moved to scan Minerva. "Lungs, he-"

The Doctor in anger had leaned forwards and ripped off the waiter's face, ultimately revealing a pilot light burning underneath. No one scanned his wife for 'food to eat'. Plus, he had a suspicion it was a robot anyways.

"First of all - ever so the gentleman," Minerva chuckled at the Doctor's gimmick. "Thank you. Second of all, that's...peculiar," she blinked at the 'waiter' and leaned forwards. "Is that...is that a...face?"

"Yeah, it's very convincing," remarked Clara.

"No-" the Doctor waved the mask that-was-in-reality-a-face in front of Clara, "-it's a _face_."

Clara nearly threw up there and then. "Oh!"

"Yes," the waiter suddenly said.

"Yes, what?" Minerva eyed it suspiciously, now awaiting for any attack.

"Yes, we have a children's menu."

Minerva never felt so furious and disgusted in her life. "YOU FILTHY-" but metal restraints had popped up from their seats which restrained them over the arms and the chest, waist.

Their booth zoomed down a raft to come to a stop somewhere underneath the restaurant. From lack of use, the entire room was covered in dirty rust. Figures in alcove surrounded the room but didn't seem to acknowledge them yet, as we'll as the prominent half-faced man sitting in the middle of the room.

"Hello?" the Doctor started calling out to the half-faced man across them. "Hello, are you the manager? I demand to speak to the manager."

"This is not a real restaurant, is it?" Clara concluded affirmatively.

"Well... it's more a sort of automated organ collection station for the unwary diner," Minerva swayed her head. "Sweeney Todd without the pies."

"So, where are we now?"

"Factually, an ancient spaceship, probably buried for centuries, functionally... a larder."

Clara glanced one more time at the motionless figures in the room before asking. "So why hasn't somebody come for us?"

"Because we are alive," Minerva answered like it should've been obvious.

"But we're alive in a larder."

"Exactly. It's cheaper than freezing us."

"OK," Clara looked away to mask her uncertainty.

"Not to worry though, this metal is nothing to a Moontsay," Minerva looked down at the metal bounds and slowly began to spread her ice.

"Where's Liv?" Clara asked, looking up from where they came from.

"Gone to get help I'm sure. She can't exactly appear if she doesn't know where you are, Clara, remember?"

The snapping noise indicated Minerva successfully broke apart the metal restraints around them.

"I said so!" Minerva cheered and got up, turning to help the others.

"I know I did the right thing marrying you," the Doctor remarked as he got up, his hands clasped with hers.

"Oh, is that the only reason you married me?" Minerva raised an eyebrow.

"...among...other things," the Doctor responded, his eyes giving her a little trail.

Minerva smiled with a tiny blush, all in the meanwhile Clara once again looked up from the shaft waiting for Liv to come back. The Doctor grabbed Minerva's hand and made way for the closest figure in an alcove.

"Doctor?" Clara called for after seeing the two aliens far from her. She quickly scurried to join them.

The Doctor was studying the figure when she caught up. "Dormant," he declared.

"How do you know?" Clara asked.

"I don't. I'm just hoping," the Doctor admitted with ease, although his hand did tighten a little around Minerva's.

"Well I guess we can conclude who killed the dinosaur," Minerva sighed. "What better inventory than from a dinosaur?"

Clara glanced at them, raising her eyebrows. "Why would robots need organs? Burke and Hare from space?"

"No, but that's a good theory. Droids harvesting spare parts," the Doctor said distractedly as he turned for the half-faced man still sitting motionless, "That rings a bell."

Minerva playfully smiled and patted his arm with her other arm. "The Clockwork droids and Madame de Pompadour."

Clara had curiously gone up to the half-faced man in the meantime. She was bemused by his half face structure and the fact he wasn't even moving a finger to acknowledge them. She spotted a long wire from the chair he sat on and gasped. "Is he...is he...charging?" she asked the other two aliens as they joined her. "Like a cellphone?"

"Like a cellphone," confirmed Minerva.

"OK, so half-man, half-robot. A cyborg, yeah?"

The Doctor was silent as he intently studied the half-faced man, and soon spotted the winning difference. " _Oh_."

Clara looked at him, waiting for an explanation. "Oh?"

"Oh-h…"

Minerva soon got the meaning and scowled. "It's the hands, Clara."

Clara shot a look at the hands of the cyborg and frowned. "What about them?"

"Look at them," the Doctor instructed her.

Clara did as told but came up with nothing again. "I'm looking!"

The Doctor leaned forwards and raised the hands. "They don't match. These hands don't belong to the same body!"

Clara made a face. "I don't understand."

"I don't blame you. See, this...this is not your normal cyborg. This isn't a man turning himself into a robot. This is a robot turning himself... into a man, piece by piece."

Clara gasped and looked up. "That's what the restaurant's for."

"Well, it would need a constant supply of spare parts," Minerva pursed her lips together as she began getting images of what that must feel like for the humans. "You can tan skin, but organs rot."

The Doctor was once again examining the hands, but closer. "Some of that metalwork looks Roman. Wonder how long it's been around, how much of the original is even left. The eyeballs look very fresh, though. Eugh!"

Suddenly, the half-faced man sprung upwards, causing the trio to move back. It placed his hands on the arms of the chair while the visible clockwork gears turning inside his head.

"Is it awake now?" Clara didn't dare speak louder than a faint whisper.

"It's waking up... I think," Minerva whispered back before leading the Doctor and Clara away from the cyborg.

As they made it past an open door, the Doctor had the idea to stop and turn around. "I've seen this before. I'm missing something!"

"Dear, there's no time!" Minerva tried reaching for his arm again but he moved away while he thought out loud.

He turned away, tapping his head constantly. "It's the brand-new head, rebooting! Come on! I've seen this before!"

"Minerva! Doctor!" Clara called frantically from the threshold of the next door.

"Coming, Clara!" Minerva waved the human off, more focused on getting her husband to walk. "Doctor, I am not gonna say it again! GO!"

She barely managed to push him through the doorway when the door slid closed, blocking her off.

"Oh, great!" She huffed and glanced back to the half-faced man, seeing him begin moving up from the chair.

"Minerva!" the Doctor was urgently using the sonic on the door to get it back open but it was of no use.

Minerva saw the man was busy unplugging himself. "Let it go, just get out!"

"No-"

"Martian!

The Doctor paused his attempts and looked at her through the small window on the door. They shared a look that Clara didn't quite understand, and so when the Doctor suddenly pulled her away from the door, leading her away, she was utterly astounded.

Did the Doctor...just leave Minerva!?

~0~

Minerva whirled around to see the half-faced man going for the booth they originally came for. She quickly slid into an indentation by the door and waited for the man to turn away. When he did, she dashed for another door. She took refuge in an empty alcove but winced when a Chinese robot bent to look at her.

Minerva did no more tries to escape. She straightened, fixed her dress, held her head up high by the chin and walked back to the main room. The robots she passed turned to her, but she maintained eyes on the half-faced man.

"You should give your chair for a Queen," she stated in a highly authoritative tone.

The half-faced man discarded her words and instead came up with. "Where is the other one? There was another. Where is he?"

"Leaving my good friend Clara out of this? I don't know if I should thank you or scold you for that," Minerva looked around at the other figures.

"Where is the other? You will tell us... or you will be destroyed."

Minerva scoffed. "Yeah, okay."

"You will tell us."

"Or what?" Minerva leaned on a foot with one hand on her hip.

"You will die."

"So?"

"You will tell us where the other one is."

Minerva raised an eyebrow and stepped closer to the man. "Never tell a Queen what to do."

"You will be destroyed."

"And then you won't have the answers to your questions. So who loses there?"

"Humans feel pain," the man changed tactics, much to Minerva's amusement.

"Bigger threat to smaller threat - nice one," Minerva smirked then crossed her arms. "Although I should tell you the joke is on you because I'm not human."

The half-faced man seemed to ponder on the news but still, in the end, came up with, "The information can be extracted by means of your suffering."

Minerva crossed her arms again, arching one eyebrow, looking rather amused. "Are you trying to scare me? Honey, I've been through hell and back- you are nothing to me."

The man didn't take that lightly and reached to his lapels. He attached a blowtorch that seemed to be positioned somewhere near his lapels and held it out to Minerva.

"Shoot me, I don't care. I've got plenty bodies left. But then, once more, who wins there? You don't get answers at all _so_ I suggest a little peace between us - question for a question strategy."

"We will not answer questions," the half-faced man declared.

"But did I _ask_ if you wanted to?" snapped Minerva, dropping her hands to her side. "Question number one, why did you kill the dinosaur?"  
"We will not answer questions."

"I asked the question so now answer it," Minerva responded in a growing angry voice. "Why did you kill the dinosaur?"

"We will not answer questions!"

"You killed an innocent creature and I will not stand for that so either you tell me why you did it or I will freeze every last bit of you until those fresh eyes of yours crumble into nothing," Minerva had stepped impossibly close to the cyborg with such a dark look in her new eyes.

After a moment of consideration, the half-faced man consented. "Within the optic nerve of the dinosaur is material of use to our computer systems."

"Nope, two things wrong with that," Minerva shook her head. "First one, you literally burned a whole dinosaur for a spare part. Second of all, if you know what's in a dinosaur's optic nerve it means you've seen them before-"

"Where is the other one?"

"Excuse you I am talking," Minerva interjected quite irritated before continuing, "How long have you been rebuilding yourselves? What am I saying - look at the state of you! Is there any real you left? What's the point?"

"We will reach the Promised Land," the half-faced man responded.

Minerva blinked incredulously. "The Promised Land? Are you religious or something? What's that?"

"Where is the other one?"

"Really wanna know the answer?" Minerva smirked and began backtracking away. "The Doctor - _my_ Doctor - is _always_ with me. And, if not, then he's making his way back to me."

The moment she turned her right hand palm upside, it was taken by a figure in a black cloak. The figure peeled off a robot face to reveal the Doctor. Behind them, Clara slowly inched forwards - she wanted to be as far away as possible from the cyborg.

"How'd I do, dear?" Minerva sweetly smiled at him.

"Excellent, as usual," the Doctor smiled back, although gripped her hand discreetly. It wasn't exactly the ideal plan he had in mind but they had to take advantage of the moment to get some answers.

"Hello, hello, rubbish robots from the dawn of time, thank you for all the gratuitous information. Five foot one and crying - you never stood a chance," he slapped down the half-faced man. "I don't appreciate you aiming weapons at my wife. In fact-" he pulled out his sonic and pressed it to the torch, "This is your power source, and feeble though it is, I can use it to blow this whole room if I see one more thing that I don't like, and that includes karaoke and mime, so take no chances."

"Why are you here?" the half-faced man demanded, making Minerva scoff.

"You're one to talk."

"Why did you invite us?" the Doctor half snapped. "The message, in the paper... that was you, wasn't it?" the half-faced man tilted his head, clearly in the dark. "Oh. I hate being wrong in public. Everybody forget that happened."

"Dear, how about we forget that and call in some friends?" Minerva had been staring at the shaft from where they originally had come through. "Someone is giving off a rather unique scent…"

"Clara, say the word," the Doctor glanced back at the human.

"What word?" she blinked.

"They never sent you in here without a word."

Clara frowned when she understood. "I don't want to say it."  
"I've guessed already."

Clara sighed deeply and glanced at Minerva who merely shrugged, already resigned to it.

"Geronimo!" the trio exclaimed.

From an opening in the ceiling, Vastra and Jenny dropped in gracefully by un-rollowing a silk sash. Immediately, they revealed their weapons.

"Remain still and lay down your weapons, in the name of the British Empire!" Vastra ordered.

Behind them, someone else dropped and blonde hair whipped back to reveal Liv. "Whoo! Now _that_ was fun!"

Strax fell beside her head first, giving a sharp yelp of pain.

"Liv!" Clara happily cried, rushing to her imaginary friend to give her a hug.

Liv laughed and hugged her back. "Had to come in the manual way because I didn't know where you were."

The half-faced man started coming towards them. "I burned an ancient, beautiful creature for one inch of optic nerve. What do you think you can accomplish, little man?"

"Let's find out, Vastra?" Minerva smirked.

The lizard woman was already on her way to block a torch attack from the half-faced man. "The establishment upstairs has been disabled with maximum prejudice, and the authorities summoned."

"Hang on," Clara paused and shot a look at the Doctor, "she called the police? We never do that, we should start."

The Doctor flat out ignored her and addressed the cyborg. "You see? Destroy us if you will, they're still going to close your restaurant," he then made a face, "That was going to sound better."

"Then we will destroy you," the half-faced man declared and motioned for the other robots to start moving. A door to a hallway slid open to reveal more robots coming for them. The group was pushed together eventually.

"You don't kill," Minerva called. "Because you're logical. You have restraint. You kill to survive - you're not a murderer."

Clara's head whipped towards the woman. "He's not a what? This is a slaughterhouse!"

"And how does that make it different from any other restaurant?" the Doctor sounded irritated at the accusation. "You weren't vegetarian the last time I checked." Clara quieted and looked down. The Doctor looked at the half-faced man. "This is over. Killing us won't change that. What would be the point?"

"To find the Promised Land."

"You're millions of years old, it's time you knew - there isn't one."

"I am in search of paradise."

"Yeah, well, me too. I'm not going to make it either."

The half-faced man backhanded the Doctor, knocking the Time Lord to the floor. "Doctor!" Minerva cried.

The half-faced man went for the shaft where the booth was still placed on. "I will leave in the escape capsule. Destroy where necessary."

"Escape capsule?" Vastra called. "This ship is millions of years old, it'll never fly."

"It has been repaired."

"What with?"

"You."

Alarmed, Strax shouted, "Defensive positions everyone."

The others surrounded the Doctor and Minerva - or so they thought - as the robots advanced.

"Doctor! Minerva! He's getting away!" Clara exclaimed as she heard the booth begin to rattle.

"Your friends are intelligent. They'll know better than to follow me," the half-faced man said so sure of himself. Because as the remainder fought off the robots, they soon realized neither the Doctor nor Minerva were in the room anymore.

The half-faced man, now in his restaurant/ship, stood by the threshold looking down at the city. He heard glass clinging and looked back to see the Doctor pouring whiskey into two glasses that Minerva held.

"What are you doing?" the half-faced man inquired.  
"I've got the horrible feeling I'm going to have to kill you," the Doctor sighed and put down the whiskey bottle. "I thought you might appreciate a drink first. I know I would."

He took his own glass but Minerva refused to give the second one up. "I'm not giving him squat. He can ki - you're actually drinking whiskey?" she was surprised to find the Doctor actually drowning down the liquor.

"I guess I am," the Doctor said, surprised himself that he finally found an incarnation that sustained alcohol.

In the meanwhile, the half-faced man had reached for a lever and pulled it down. The entire place shook and dropped dust from the ceiling.

"51st century, right?" the Doctor called. "Time travelling spaceship, crashed in the past. You're trying to get home the long way round."

"I go to the Promised Land," the half-faced man responded.

"So you keep saying."

Minerva watched him go for another lever and shook her head. "You do realize this ship will never fly, right? You're wasting your time."

"The escape pod is viable."

"How? You can't patch up a spaceship with human remains!"

"You know, this really is ringing a bell," the Doctor mumbled, missing Minerva's roll of eyes. He didn't remember she already explained this to him.

She was brought to attention when the half-faced man pressed several more buttons on the control panel that caused more shaking.  
"How _are_ are you powering it?" she curiously asked. She and the Doctor quickly moved for the panel to see for themselves.

" _Skin_."

As the escape pod configured Minerva rushed for the threshold to see a view begin to form. "Okay...rather clever I will admit."

The Doctor meanwhile, pulled out a fuse and saw a particular name written over it. "'SS Marie Antoinette.' Out-of-control repair Droids, cannibalizing human beings. I know that this is familiar, but I just can't seem to place it."

"For real?" Minerva whirled around frowning. " _I_ wasn't even there-" she pointed at herself, "-and I know!"

"Sister ship of the 'Madame De Pompadour.' Nope, not getting it."

Minerva groaned in exasperation, throwing a hand to signal she was done with it.

"How would you kill me?" the half-faced man inquired.

Minerva looked his way inquisitively. "Peculiar question," she remarked. "So let me ask you a better one: what do you think of the view?"

"I do not think of it."

Minerva scoffed. "There's more human in you than machine. So quit wasting time and tell us...what do you think of the view?"

"Go on, answer her," the Doctor motioned.

The half-faced man walked over to a window and moved the curtain to the side. "It is beautiful."

"No, it isn't. It's just far away," the Doctor corrected. "Everything looks too small. I prefer it down there. Everything is huge. Everything is so important. Every detail, every moment, every life clung to."

"How could you kill me?"

"Because you want us to," Minerva dead seriously responded with. "Because you don't really want to carry on."

"What'll happen to the other Droids when you die?" the Doctor asked. "You're the control node, aren't you? Presumably they'll deactivate."

"I will not die. I will reach the Promised Land."

"The Promise Land is what comes after death for many humans," Minerva pointed out. "It's a superstition that you have picked up from all the humanity you've stuffed inside yourself. Get it?"

"I am not dead."

"Debatable."

The Doctor sighed and came up with another explanation. "You are a broom. Question - you take a broom, you replace the handle, and then later you replace the brush and you do that over and over again. Is it still the same broom? Answer - no, of course it isn't. But you can still sweep the floor. Which is not strictly relevant, skip that last part. You have replaced every piece of yourself, mechanical and organic, time and time again - there's not a trace of the original you left." He went to a nearby table with a silver platter and brought it back to the half-faced man to see himself in the reflection. In doing so, he got a view of his own new face, one the Doctor still had not figured out yet. "You probably can't even remember where you got that face from."

The half-faced man chucked the platter to the side. "It cannot end!"

"But you're looking for the Promise Land and you know damn well that's what comes after death," snapped Minerva who went towards the doors.

The half-faced man started walking for her."Self-destruction is against my basic program."

"And murder is against ours, yet here we both are," Minerva said without noticing.

The moment he raised his hand to strike her, the Doctor lunged forwards and grabbed him from behind. Minerva turned around late and stumbled from the surprise.

The Doctor managed to lock the half-faced man between the wall.

"Doctor, be careful!" Minerva shouted frantically. They were far too close to the doors for her liking.

"You are stronger than you look," the half-faced man commented.

"This is over. Are you capable of admitting that?" the Doctor asked.

"Do you have it in you to murder me?"

"You tried to do the same to my wife - that alone should constitute grounds for retaliation."

"Don't forget about the people down in the city," Minerva stepped forwards. "And don't you ever make the mistake of making assumptions about how far we will go to protect them."

The half-faced man lowered his torch weapon and the Doctor stepped back closer to Minerva. "You realize, of course, one of us is lying about our basic programming."

"Yes."

"And I think we know who that is."

Minerva stepped up beside the Doctor and took his hand. "The Promise Land is superstition, but perhaps, for your peace, you can reach it… if that's what you truly want."

For a moment, it appeared like that half-faced man wouldn't relent. He then glanced out the window.

~ 0 ~

Down in the city, all the robots stopped their attacks on the remainder of the group. With their leader dead, they were deactivated. The police cleared everything up at the site, sending onlookers off with the idea it was merely a trick from cruel culprits. Clara, being unable to find neither Minerva nor the Doctor, took a ride on the carriage with Vastra and her trio. Liv received them with the news that the TARDIS was gone, however...

Clara slowly peered through the bedroom door that was left open a crack. She saw a dark haired woman's hair swing by in a walk. Clearing her throat, she gently pushed the door open a little more and saw Minerva making the bed.

"Clara," she smiled upon seeing her human friend. Her face betrayed nothing of a trace of what happened a while ago.

"You're...in clothes…" Clara had taken notice of the modern clothes Minerva wore. "Regular clothes, I mean…"

Minerva chuckled and patted down her buttoned-up green blouse. "Oh yes, I have a spare of clothes here with Vastra - we all do actually, if you wanted to change."

Clara, for a moment, glanced the other way. "Um...the...the Doctor's gone…"

"Oh no, he's not gone," Minerva said so casually as she fluffed a pillow. "I lost him back there but I'm sure he'll be back any second. Regeneration is still affecting him."

"How can you be so sure he's coming back?" Clara had to ask. The Doctor had changed after all, so what assured her that he would stick by his old habits.

Minerva seemed completely at ease. She put down the pillow in it's place and sighed. "Because, if he's not with me then he's making his way back to me. And it works both ways," she winked.

Clara smiled lightly. Minerva went back to the tall mirror and tilted her head as she examined herself thoroughly. Her dark hair was straight as ever, matching her hazel-green eyes. Her cheekbones were thinner, and her age far older than ever before. She was tall once again, though.

"How do I look, Clara?" she turned to Clara anxiously, gesturing to her appearance and attire of the moment. "The Doctor's clearing his mind now so...he'll be _actually_ looking at me now. I've got to look my best."

Clara's smile widened, chuckling as she felt things slowly begin to normalize again. "Wonderful - he was drooling for you in his past incarnation and he'll be drooling for you in this one."

Minerva playfully rolled her eyes. "I'm being serious. I've never been... _older_."

"If you haven't noticed, he kinda grew some gray hairs…"

"But it's different, it's always different for women," Minerva sighed. "Ever since the Doctor and I met I've always been a young pretty face. He got used to that, I know he did. For me I have seen young, old, middle aged Doctor versions. But he's yet to see me."

Clara looked to the side, genuinely considering her words and feelings over this. "So, the Doctor changed, but...not when it comes to you. I admit for a while I thought he might be different now, but back there he looked the same when he was by your side. And I don't think he was looking at your 'pretty face'. He was looking at his wife, his 'Clever Girl'-" Clara had to laugh, as did Minerva, "He might be shallow with some things but never when it comes to you. Besides, if you never looked at his young face, why would he?"

"Thank you, Clara," Minerva smiled softly, feeling slightly better. However, when they heard the TARDIS materializing Minerva felt her heart beating at a rate of a thousand. "Guess we should...go see how he is…" she bit her lip and nervously led the way out of the room.

Bidding goodbye to Vastra, Minerva, Clara and Liv made their way towards the TARDIS. Minerva barely pressed a palm on the doors when the box herself opened them up for her.

"Thanks, old girl," Minerva patted it on her way inside.

The first thing she (and and the others) noticed was the darker mood of the TARDIS interior. The upper level was now full of bookshelves, complete with a leather chair the Doctor was currently sitting on. There were absolutely no more circles.

"You've redecorated," Minerva said, surprised. She walked further inside, Clara and Liv purposely lingering behind. "I'm not sure if I like it just yet."

"Not completely entirely convinced myself," the Doctor admitted as he got up. He walked down the line. "I think there should be more round things on the walls. I used to have lots of round things. I wonder where I put them."

"I think Elias will wonder that too," Minerva smiled sadly.

"I think...Elias will wonder _many_ things when he comes back home," the Doctor corrected, now heading down the stairs for the console. "Neither of us are the same anymore. Who are we?"

Minerva thought about it, and let him go first in the process.

"I'm the Doctor. I've lived for over 2,000 years and not all of them were good. I've made many mistakes, and it's about time that I did something about that."

Minerva walked up to meet him halfway. "Well, I'm Minerva. And I won't even begin to yell the hell out of you for adding another 300 years to our age difference...so count yourself lucky Doctor."

The Doctor looked down smiling widely. That was his Minerva alright.

"It's impossible to live that long and not make mistakes," Minerva continued, now serious. "What matters is how we mend them. And if...you still want me around...I think we can fix it."

"Want?" the Doctor now looked at her oddly. "What else would I want?"

"A younger face?" Minerva croaked. "I was telling Clara how you'd never seen me older until now and...maybe it might change things."

The Doctor looked past her to Clara and Liv . Without saying anything, Clara nodded to confirm Minerva's words.

The Doctor then returned his focus to Minerva. He remembered the last time she'd been forced to undergo another change due to his regeneration and how anxious she was about what he would think about her new self. He understood it, he himself had the same thoughts in regards to himself at the moment. But he remembered what had eased all her doubts the last time.

He stepped closer and took one of her hands, raising it to his mouth. "Minerva, I love you. It's been centuries and centuries, and you just don't get the message."

A light smile spread across Minerva's face then. "I'm a bit of an idiot sometimes…"

"No you're not - that's my job," the Doctor kissed her hand then lowered it down. He turned sideways to put the TARDIS into a specific destination.

Afterwards, he gestured to his new choice of attire. "What do you think?" He wore a black buttoned-up shirt with matching black pants and shoes. Over it he wore an opened red-lined jacket.

Minerva glanced at Clara and Liv to see what they would think. She already had her own conclusion.

"You don't have a bowtie anymore-" Liv began, "-so you're definitely less of a dork now."

The Doctor shot her a mini-glare. "How about someone's opinion that matters?" He glanced at Minerva.

"Hmph, then I won't even say what I thought," Clara mumbled to Liv.

Minerva stepped closer to the Doctor and looked him up and down a moment. She placed a hand over his shirt and started to smile. "I...think I kinda like it. It's a lot more mature."

The Doctor was pleased with her response. He took her hand from him and turned them for the console, ready to go when Clara called out.

"Where are we going exactly?" she and Liv moved towards the console.

"Only one place we want to go right now," the Doctor said so sure that Minerva doubted with a look. He smiled. "Would you like to see your son again?"

Minerva's face lit up in that second. "Take me right now!"

The Doctor nodded and moved around till the monitor was in front of him. "Just give me another 2 minutes."

Liv appeared beside him and looked at the monitor that read the current time: 4:58. "So...why?"

"Something important is happening right about now," the Doctor promised, leaving the three women to wonder.

~0~

"Elias, don't throw your teddy bear," Zohar, Minerva's childhood friend and current leader of the Monsoon's military, said to the toddler who had indeed just thrown his teddy bear across the playpen he was in. Elias giggled, plainly ignoring her words, and waddled over to retrieve his teddy bear. Zohar walked by the playpen when she heard the landline ringing. She glanced back at the toddler one more time before picking up the phone.

"Hello?" she answered.

"Put Elias on."

Zohar's eyebrows knitted together. "What? Who's this?"

"Zohar, put Elias on, _please_ please. It's the Doctor."

"...yeah...why do you sound like that?"

There was a clear frustration in the Doctor's voice, as well as pain which was putting Zohar on edge.

"I'm phoning from a very difficult moment, please Zohar, put my son on the line. Let me say goodbye."

Zohar whirled around to see Elias taking a bite of his bear's ear. "Um...um, okay…" She started walking for the toddler.

"What time is it, Zohar?"

"4:58, why?"

"Don't worry about it. Put Elias on."

"Elias? Come here," she leaned down and took the toddler out of the playpen. "It's your Daddy, you wanna talk to your Daddy?"

Elias beamed and dropped his teddy bear to reach for the phone. "Daddy!" Zohar lowered the phone to Elias' ear. "Hi, Daddy!"

The Eleventh Doctor felt his hearts swell as he heard his son's voice after more than 300 years. "Hi there, El."

"Daddy, come home?" Elias beamed.

"Um…" the Doctor sighed, he knew this would be difficult but he felt he needed to do this. He needed to say goodbye to Elias. But he couldn't bring himself to change before at least hearing his son's voice one more time. "Elias, your Daddy with the silly bowtie...isn't coming home anymore."

Elias tilted his head, gripping the phone with his two hands. "Why?"

"Daddy's...going to change...and...and when I come back...I'm going to look different," the Doctor tried to explain as simple as possible.

"I want Daddy," Elias firmly said, his thin eyebrows knitting together. "I want Daddy!"

Zohar curiously looked at Elias wondering what the Doctor was telling him.

"Elias, Daddy and Mummy are coming right now, I promise."

"Okay, Daddy," Elias quickly sobered up.

The Doctor sighed again. He could feel the regeneration energy inside him trying to burst out. He needed to hang up already. And so, with both hearts clenching terribly, he bid goodbye to his son. "I love you, Arlo. And no matter how many times I change, Daddy will always love you."

Elias was more serious than ever, and it even surprised Zohar. "I love, Daddy," he said quietly. The simple words meant more to the Doctor than the little toddler could ever imagine. "Come home?"

The Doctor smiled from his spot, his eyes tearing up. "I'm coming," he sniffed. "Goodbye, El."

The TARDIS began materializing in the room almost immediately after.

"Bye, Daddy!" Elias said, and gave the phone back to Zohar when the line went dead.

"Now what was that about?" Zohar hung up and picked up Elias' bear from the floor.

The TARDIS door opened up and first came out Clara and Liv (invisible to Zohar of course).

"Hi Ca-yah!" Elias waved a hand.

Clara smiled softly as she came up and bent down in front of him. "Hi there, El. Good to see you again." She kissed his hair but he quickly messed it up, cheekily smiling at her afterwards. She playfully rolled her eyes

"Elias, your Mummy and Daddy look a little bit different now…" Liv began when the Doctor and Minerva stepped out.

Zohar's eyes widened in shock. "How did you…?"

The Doctor didn't tell Minerva she was currently squeezing his arm cutting off blood circulation. She was nervous enough and truthfully, so was he. Would their son reject him? Even Minerva? He had never seen them change after all.

Elias left both Clara and Zohar silently, slowly taking steps towards the alien pair. He was examining them with his little green eyes. That box was his, anyways, and the TARDIS wouldn't let anyone but his Daddy and Mommy to drive it.

"Elias?" Minerva swallowed hard, still clinging to the Doctor. Elias stayed still, only staring at her. "Elias, it's Mommy. Your Mommy."

Elias turned sideways to look at Clara and Liv. It seemed he was trying to put in pieces.

"Elias?" the Doctor spoke up, making the toddler turn again. "Remember what I said on the phone? Daddy was coming to pick you up - but no more silly bowties."

Elias gasped. "Where bowtie!?"

"I put it away so that you can wear it later," the Doctor smiled. He looked down at Minerva who was still nervous as ever. He carefully unlatched her hand from his arm and moved slightly closer. Bending down, he extended his arms up for Elias. "Do you think we can make your Mummy smile again? I don't like it when she's sad, do you?"

Elias' eyes flickered to Minerva, the woman tearing up already.

"C'mon El, you remember what we do when Mummy's upset right?" the Doctor tried again.

Something went off in Elias' mind that showed in his widened eyes. "Kiss! Kiss!" he exclaimed and ran up to the Doctor, letting himself be wrapped up in arms and lifted up. The Doctor had to hug his son tightly for a moment. After centuries he was holding his son again and he was damn sure he would never go centuries without seeing him again.

After planting the biggest kiss on Elias' head, the Doctor pulled away and motioned to Minerva. "So, how do we help Mummy?"

Elias giggled and leaned closer to Minerva, planting his small hands on her cheeks before pepper-kissing her entire face. Minerva couldn't help it and burst into tears. She practically snatched Elias from the Doctor to hug him herself.

"My baby!" She kissed the top of his head. Much like the Doctor, she had to hug Elias tightly.

Elias kissed Minerva's cheek then glanced back at the Doctor. "Daddy? Turn! Yo' turn!"

The Doctor nodded and moved closer to Minerva as well. He wasn't quite sure if Minerva was alright with it but when she grabbed him by a lapel and kissed him, he was assured she was.

"How long were they gone?" Zohar whispered to Clara and unknowingly to Liv. The way they had hugged Elias made it seem like so much had happened in just one day.

Clara smiled widely as the Doctor joined in on the hug. "Far too long."

~ 0 ~

The half-faced man woke up in a bright, green garden. Confused, he sat up and put on his hat that was sitting on the ground beside him. He spotted a woman dressed in Edwardian clothing across him, sitting on the side of a fountain. Her icy blue eyes gazed back at him and a wicked, little smile stretched across her face.

"I'm Missy. You made it!" the woman walked over to where the half-faced man was. "I hope that little ending wasn't as bad as it seemed." She took the man's hand and led him to a table. "Now did he push you out of that thing, or did you fall? Or..." her smile turned into a smirk, "...did _she_ push you out? Wouldn't put it behind her now that I've seen what she's capable of."

"Where am I?" the half-faced man looked around, completely lost.

"Well, where do you think you are? Look around you, you made it. The Promised Land. Paradise!" the woman stood up with arms stretched on either side of her. "Welcome... to Heaven!"

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:**_

Ta-da! Hope you guys liked the first chapter! Now I couldn't really see 11 calling to Clara because I couldn't see Clara going through that little moment of her not 'seeing the Doctor'. I felt that after everything, Clara couldn't feel the same as she did in the show. Besides, I didn't see 11 being able to regenerate without some last contact with his son. Of course he would call Elias instead! I loved writing that moment because it was so simple, sweet and yet so sad. Anyways, we also got a glimpse into Missy, uh-oh. If we remember what went down between her & Minerva in the previous stories then we know it'll definitely be interesting when they re-meet.

A note, the cover will be up soon!

For Minerva's new appearance change (because it is _**not** _ a regeneration, do note that) I see her as the actress **_Kristin Davis_**. She has long, dark hair and hazel-green eyes. She's taller now but not as much as the Doctor. She's still American too so no account there.

Also, for new readers, Liv's appearance looks just like the actress _**Kimberly Dos Ramos**_!

And so, we go back to our original updates of every 2 weeks! Thank you guys for reading and if there are any new readers I'd like to say hello and hope you stick around!


	2. Into Darkness

A young dark-skinned woman was failing to pilot her ship while her brother sat unconscious in the passenger seat. She could see the large trail of smoke her ship was leaving behind and knew the situation couldn't last much longer.

"Aristotle! This is Wasp Delta, do you hear me?!" she called into the comms. Before glancing at he brother, "Stay with me, Kai! Stay with me, please! Aristotle! We have been hit! Major damage!" She barely managed to avoid a fire beam from the larger ship chasing her. "Aristotle! Aristotle! The enemy are right on top of us!"

She couldn't deflect the hits longer. Her scream echoed after receiving a massive blow from the enemy ship.

Next thing she knew she felt something cold and hard underneath her, and her cheek. Instantly she opened her eyes and saw a darker blue room, one that was not her ship interior.

"Wake up!" she heard a high-pitched boy's voice tell her, followed by a tiny poke on her leg.

Turning her gaze below she saw a toddler vigorously poking her knee.

"Dere!" he happily cried when he saw her looking at him. "Mommy, Daddy, look!"

Immediately, the woman pulled herself away from the toddler, swiping her gun on her side as she got up.

"You'll probably feel a bit sick, please don't be," called the Doctor from across the TARDIS console.

"Please put that down, dear," Minerva walked around the console to retrieve her son who'd gone back to playing with his teddy bear Roger on the floor. "It's not a good influence on the kids."

"Where's my brother?!" the woman failed to follow instructions. "He was right beside me. Where's Kai? How did I get here?"

"I materialised a time capsule exactly round you and saved your life one second before your ship exploded-" the Doctor placed down a coffee tray on the console, "-but do please keep crying."

" _Doctor_ ," Minerva rolled her eyes, still unused to his new bluntness that had over exceeded his usual one.

"What?" the Doctor looked at her with a genuinely confused face.

"My brother just died!" the pilot woman exclaimed, now directly aiming her gun at the Time Lord.

"His sister didn't. You're very welcome. Put the gun down."

"Or _what_?"

Minerva sighed and returned to the Doctor's side holding Elias in her arms. "Or you might shoot someone clearly. My daughter did that once, she got off easy - _you_ won't."

"I'd be in charge of your vessel," the woman seemed to want to challenge them but just couldn't.

"Actually, our son would be in charge," the Doctor glanced at the toddler who was still busied with his stuffed bear. "And he's smarter than you no doubt."

" _Doctor_ ," Minerva once more scolded, this time without looking at him.

"I haven't said anything!"

"Just shut up!" she exclaimed then inquired from the stranger woman, "What's your name by the way?"

"I'm Lieutenant Journey Blue of the Combined Galactic Resistance. I demand you take me back to my command ship, the Aristotle, which is currently located…"

Minerva tilted her head, looking curious for some reason and she interjected, " _No_ , try again."

The woman, Journey, made a face but still started over. "You will take me back to my command ship, which is currently positioned…"

"Elias, help the poor girl out," Minerva gently bopped the toddler. "What do we say?"

"Pwease!" he looked at Journey with widened eyes.

Journey sighed. "Will you take me back to my ship?... _please_?"

Elias nodded his head at her, apparently confirming this time she'd gotten it right. "Prize?" he looked up at his mother who shook her head.

"No, Elias. You should never be kind just to get a prize. You should be kind because it's the right thing to do," she tapped his nose then cleared her throat purposely while shooting the Doctor a look. "And others should try to be a little nicer."

The Doctor started setting in the coordinations but sarcastically acknowledged her words. He knew that lately he'd been getting into more trouble with her because his tongue now seemed to have excelled at blunt honesty. He tried to point out that this wasn't something completely new for him as his ninth incarnation seemed to have similar mouths. Minerva would then remind him that during that specific incarnation he and she weren't as close and she therefore couldn't have scolded him then. Now, she would definitely scold him.

"The Aristotle's the big fella parked in the asteroid belt, yeah?" the Doctor moved to the levers and pulled one down. "It's shielded. More or less."

Journey nearly fell back if she hadn't managed to snag a hand onto the console. When the box stilled, Minerva gestured for Journey to go check it out. Nervously, the woman did turn and walked towards the doors.

"Dry your eyes, Journey Blue. Crying's for civilians," the Doctor took Minerva's hand and went after the other woman. "It's how we communicate with you lot."

After Journey stepped out, which had been into an efficient looking building, she got a good look at the blue box. "It's...smaller on the outside."

"Yes," Minerva turned around, "Someone already beat you to that precise line."

"This isn't a battleship," the Doctor pulled Minerva into the hallway without noticing the near accident he caused. "Medical insignia - it's a hospital."

A colonel with two armed soldiers behind walked up to the group after hearing of their unexpected landing. "We don't need hospitals now. The Daleks don't leave any wounded. And we don't take any prisoners."

"We saved your little friend here, if that's in any way relevant to mention," the Doctor nodded back to Journey.

"That's true, sir. He did," the woman in question nodded.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome. We wish we could've done more."

"Then you should have."

"Be more grateful, will yah?" Minerva raised one eyebrow at the rude man. "My son knows how to show more gratitude than you...and he's one and a half!"

The colonel seemed to mildly take in her words. He coldly declared, "The security of this base is absolute. So we're still going to kill you."

Elias frowned. "Be _nice_!" he followed his mother's words from earlier.

But, of course, the Colonel took no notice of the toddler. "Shoot them, bag them and throw them outside."

But before the soldiers could touch the aliens Journey placed herself in front of them. "No! Stop! He's a doctor! And we have a patient. Don't we, Uncle?"

The Colonel considered this idea and looked at the Doctor who, more or less, seemed bored of the place already. Taking his chances, he agreed to let them at least see the patient.

"Why does a hospital need a doctor?" the Doctor inquired as they now walked through another hallway.

"You realize what's wrong with that sentence don't you?" Minerva made a face at him.

"The Aristotle wasn't always hidden. The Daleks got here before us," the Colonel replied nonetheless.

Journey had been studying the two aliens walking with them and came up with her results in a question, "You don't like soldiers much, do you?"

"You don't need to be liked. You've got all the guns," the Doctor nearly snapped the answer but nevertheless a truthful one. His demeanor shifted into excitement after he got a glimpse of large set of equipment in a room. "Wow! A moleculon nanoscaler!"

"Please don't touch it," Minerva sighed knowing what she said wouldn't matter.

"You know what it does, then?" Journey inquired.

"It miniaturizes living matter. What's the medical application, though? Do you use it to shrink the surgeons so they can climb inside the patients?"

"Oh, there's a movie about that," Minerva remembered something about a movie once shown to her by one of her human friends. But there was so many it was impossible to remember at the moment. "Are you going to miniaturize my husband? I'll need to sign a permission form first."

The Doctor threw an unamused look at his wife for that one.

"You're a doctor, aren't you?" the Colonel glanced at the Doctor who nodded for an answer. He backtracked to a pair of sliding doors. "And this is your patient." He turned around and slid the doors open to reveal a Dalek inside hooked up with medical wires.

"Uh oh," Elias quickly dove his head into his mother's neck, hugging his teddy bear tight. He knew what those aliens did and it was never good.

The Doctor swallowed hard at the sight. "No, you don't understand. You can't put _me_ in there!"

"Doc...tor?!" went the ill Dalek.

"How do you know who I am?"

"He doesn't," the Colonel clarified. "We promised him medical assistance."

"We found it floating in space," added Journey.

"We thought it was deactivated. So we tried to disassemble it."

"Except you didn't realize there was a living creature inside," Minerva finished for them, giving them a 'really' look.

"Not till it started screaming," Journey guiltily relayed.

"Help...me," went the Dalek again.

"Why would I do that?" scoffed the Doctor. "Why would any living creature help _you_?"

"Daleks will die!"

"Die all you like. Not my problem," the Doctor turned around and started walking for the doors while taking Minerva's hand in the process.

"Daleks must be destroyed!"

Both froze in their places. "No, hold on," Minerva looked up at the Doctor, "Did he just…" she shook her head and turned around for the ill Dalek. "What did you just say?"

"All Daleks must die! I will destroy the Daleks! Destroy the Daleks! DESTROY THE DALEKS!"

~ 0 ~

Clara was having the pleasure of meeting Coal Hill's newest teacher, Danny Pink, whom she'd seen earlier in the day with some of the students. "Er...was it you that I saw outside doing the soldiery thing?" she referred back to the moment of P.E. where Danny had been implementing a solder-type lesson.

"Oh, yeah, probably The Coal Hill Cadets. Just a bit of fun."

Clara scoffed. "What, teaching them how to shoot people?"

"Careful," appeared Liv behind Danny, only visibly to Clara of course, "Your time-traveling Clara Oswald side is showing."

Clara had to withold rolling her eyes for the sake of Danny standing beside her.

"There's a bit more to modern soldiering than just shooting people," Danny was explaining cluelessly. "I like to think there's a moral dimension."

"Oh? You shoot people then cry about it afterwards?" blurted Clara.

Liv deeply sighed and planted a hand on her cheek. "My God this should turn out to be rather interesting."

Clara realized too quick that her statement had not been the best. "Something wrong?"

"Nothing, no," Danny shook his head. "Sorry, no, nothing. I just... I didn't think they'd say anything, that's all."

"Sorry?"

"Have they told everyone?"

Clara frowned, slowly losing more of what this conversation was now dealing with. She could see that Danny was growing more and more upset by the second and she didn't understand why. "No, no, no, as far as I know, nobody has told anybody anything. What are you talking about?"

"Why did you just say the crying thing?"

Clara's eyes flickered to one side and the other, overly confused. "I...was being funny."

"Why?" Danny asked, or rather sounded like he was demanding.

"I just do that," Clara shrugged.

" _Why_?"

"I dunno!"

"Anyway... I, erm... I've left some stuff in my class…" Danny nervously headed for the door.

"Okay...see you," Clara took a step towards him.

"I told you this was gonna be interesting," Liv had herself a good laugh, much to Clara's annoyance.

"We'll see about that," Clara huffed and hurried after Danny. "Er, are you going to the, um, leaving thing tonight for Cathy?"

Danny stopped walking and glanced back, looking unsure, "Um…no, I'm not…"

"Oh, okay...never mind," Clara tried her best not to look as awkward as things were getting.

"Good night," Danny said and once again began to walk.

Clara bit her lip, Liv knew that to be her impulsive side coming out. "Change your mind!" she exclaimed and Liv slapped a hand to her face.

"Unbelievable, Clara Oswald," she sighed.

"Excuse me?" Danny had once again turned around.

"I'm going. Er, I'll give you a lift," Clara suggested nervously. "Why not?"

"No, I've got some reading," Danny lamely came up with.

"Ah, okay," Clara rocked on her feet, "Maybe some other time, then?"

"Yeah," Danny gave a short nod and finally walked away.

"Okay," Liv took her moment soon afterwards when they were the last ones in the hallway, "Let's review what went wrong here."

Clara sighed, closing her eyes. "Let's not do this, Liv, please…"

"No we gotta," Liv had her hands together with her two index fingers pointed at Clara. "Because you are 28 and you gotta stop getting rejected like this."

"Rejected? I was not rejected," Clara made an offended face, although knowing Liv was partially right.

"Yeah, you kinda were," Liv planted her hands on her hips. "It was that bad _I_ felt it!"

Becoming determinant, Clara said, "We'll see about that," and she walked past Liv to find Danny.

"Clara? You're not actually going for a third round are you!?" Liv rushed after her, but Clara did not respond.

They came to a stop outside Danny's opened classroom where they began hearing Danny talking to himself. It was all related - they assumed - to Clara, which made Clara immediately grin.

"You got that goofy grin," Liv studied her closely. "It's like the one Minerva gets...oh dear, here we go, don't we?"

Clara ignored Liv's words and stepped inside the classroom, getting Danny's attention by clearing her throat. "Is the wooden sound you or...or the desk?"

"How long have you been there?" Danny straightened up in his chair, mortified to see her there.

"Longer than you would like," Clara couldn't help smile. "So will you look that terrified when you take me out for a drink?"

"I-I absolutely promise I won't…"

Clara laughed. "Play your cards right and you might!"

"Unbelievable," Liv was in awe as Clara walked out of the room.

"I so win," declared the brunette with a triumphant smirk.

"Right, I accept my defeat," Liv laughed. "Now we gotta decide what you're gonna wear - and not that green dress that makes you look like grass!"

"What?" Clara made a face, turning the hallway that would lead to her own classroom. "I love that dress!"

"I know you do, so I'm sorry," Liv shook her head.

Clara rolled her eyes and opened the door of her classroom only to be met with a coffee tray and a gray-haired Time Lord on the other side. Immediately, she frowned. "Where the hell have you been?"

"You sent us for coffee," the Doctor said, confused already.

Liv made herself visible to the Doctor only to say, "That was three weeks ago you idiot. In Glasgow."

"Blimey that's a long time," the Doctor winced. "But Minerva wanted-"

"I _know_ you're not gonna blame _me_ for this," Minerva appeared at the doorway of the TARDIS. She looked at the two women with a small smile. "He found something distracting."

"That's not important," the Doctor rolled his eyes, pushed the coffee tray towards Clara and turned back for the TARDIS.

"What's that smile for?" Minerva asked Clara as the two women followed after the Doctor.

"What? I wasn't smiling," Clara looked the other way.

"You were smiling at nothing," the Doctor scoffed. "I'd almost say you were in love, but to be honest…"

"What?" Clara dreaded the answer.

"You're not a young woman any more."

Clara froze while Minerva nearly lost it. "Doctor!"

"Well, she doesn't look it!" went the Time Lord.

"I am getting real tired of this new attitude of yours!" Minerva went after him.

"What attitude?" the Doctor calmly turned around, causing her to bump into him.

"Your over-rudeness one!"

"I'm not rude…" the Doctor then looked to the side, "...am I?"

"I don't know, you answer me," Minerva crossed her arms.

"It's not worth getting into an argument," Clara came to stand beside them.

The Doctor looked at her suddenly, in a new light. "I need something from you. I need the truth."

"OK. Right, what is it? What's...?"

"I tried asking Minerva, but she's a bit biased," the Doctor explained and when Clara glanced at Minerva for a comment the alien woman just shook her head. "And despite you trying to lie it's never gone good so you're the one to ask."

"Ask me what exactly?" Clara slowly inquired.

"Clara, be my pal...and tell me... am I a good man?"

At first Clara seemed like she knew the answer but as her mind tried coming up with a genuine answer, she realized, "I...don't know…"

"Neither do I," the Doctor turned for the console.

"I tell him he is, but apparently my word don't matter anymore," Minerva shrugged.

"You know it's not that," the Doctor threw her a look. "It's like if I were to ask Elias if I was good father - he'd say yes because he's my son...and one and a half."

"Speaking of," Liv looked around the pretty quiet console, "Where is the little munchkin?"

"On a play date with aunt Martha and cousin Eli," Minerva answered.

"And why is that?"

"Because we're going somewhere I never want my son to see."

Liv's eyes immediately flickered over to the Doctor. "Where the hell are we going?"

"Into darkness," the Doctor set the TARDIS into motion.

"Gonna need a little more than that!" Clara exclaimed, backtracking from the into the rails.

The TARDIS came into a full stop. Minerva crossed the console to where the Doctor stood, both looking grim. "We found a Dalek…" she began, making Clara freeze. "And not just any Dalek, but...a Dalek that wants to destroy...other Daleks."

Clara looked at Liv then, both matching with confused faces. "A good Dalek?" they both seemed to think of.

"There's no such thing," automatically went the Doctor.

"That's a bit inflexible, not like you," Clara blinked. "I'd almost say prejudiced."

"You've never met these creatures like we have, Clara," Minerva said, looking straight ahead as if she were in thought. "They are incapable of being kind. If time has shown us anything it's that a Dalek will _always_ be evil."

The Doctor placed his hand over hers on the console, gently taking it to hold. "C'mon, then, Clara," he called without looking from Minerva. "Ready, darling?"

Minerva gathered her courage and met his eyes. "Absolutely."

The monent they stepped out of the TARDIS they were met by the Colonel and Journey once again.

"That was quick," remarked Journey on their little time of travel.

The Doctor took no chance to stop and strode past them with Minerva, explaining to Clara and Liv - who'd chosen to show herself to the others as well. "This is gun girl. She's got a gun, and she's a girl. This is a sort of boss one. The same one as before?"

"Yes," the Colonel flatly said.

"He's probably her uncle, but I may have made that up to pass the time. This is Clara, Liv, not our assistants, they're, er, some other word."

"Carers," Liv said, meant to be a joke.

"Yeah, my carer. They care so I don't have to," the Doctor, receiving a whack from Minerva. "Except for my wife and son." _Whack_! "And Clara and Liv."

Minerva inwardly sighed and wondered how many of those she would have to give him in the future.

They re-entered the room where the Dalek was being contained in. "Doc...tor…" went the Dalek as soon as the Doctor was in range.

"Hello again," the Doctor sighed.

"Will you...help me?"

"Will you?" Clara whispered to the Time Lord.

"A Dalek so damaged, it's turned good," the Doctor said, still unable to believe it as the words left his mouth. "Morality as malfunction. How do I resist?"

"So what's the protocol for a Dalek with morals?" asked Liv who was inching near the Dalek.

"We get into its head?"

"And how exactly do you do that?"

"It wasn't a metaphor," Minerva sarcastically smiled, making Liv's eyes widened just as Clara's did.

Five minutes later, Journey was in front of the group explaining how the moleculon nanoscaler to Clara and Liv directly. She was holding a bracelet which she would soon put on the women.

"These are nanocontrollers. Once we're miniaturised, they take over the molecular compression. When the mission's over, hit the button. Are you sure you understand?"

Clara watched Journey put the bracelet on her with uncertainty, but she wasn't going to admit that soon. "Why wouldn't I?"

"Because this is a dangerous mission and you look like a school teacher."

Clara frowned. "I _am_ a school teacher."

"What was your name?" Liv asked watched attentively as Journey finished strapping the bracelet on Clara. She herself wasn't going due to the fact her ability to touch wasn't durable. If the bracelet were to fall off she could start to regrow inside the Dalek, or worse.

"Journey Blue."

"Blue?" asked Clara.

"Blue, yes. Problem?"

"No, er...I just met a soldier called Pink," Clara said, without noticing she was once again smiling.

"Lucky fella…"

"Lucky?"

"From the way you smile."

Clara's smile vanished from embarrassment. "So, er, who makes you smile or is nobody up to the job?"

"My brother," Journey finished with the bracelet on Liv, "But he burned to death a couple of hours ago, so he's really letting me down today. Excuse me."

"And what are those for?" the Doctor saw soldiers coming into the room. "I don't need armed babysitters!"

"We're not baby-sitters," one of the soldiers, a woman named Gretchen, snapped.

"We're here to shoot you dead, if you turn out to be a Dalek spy," added another soldier, Ross.

"Well, that's a relief. I hate babysitters," the Doctor shook his head but then added, "They're useful for when we want a moment alone…" and he glanced at Minerva with a small smirk. She smiled knowingly down at the floor.

"OK, listen up," Journey walked over to them. "Now, remember, do not hold your breath when the nanoscaler engages. You'll feel like you want to, but you must keep breathing normally during the miniaturisation process."

"...why?" Clara dared to ask, slowly moving for the Doctor and Minerva.

"Ever microwaved a lasagna without pricking the film on top?" asked the Doctor, hoping to make a good comparison.

Clara understood fast. "It explodes?"

"Don't be lasagna."

"C'mon children," Minerva said, taking Clara's hand and the Doctor's. They were led into the nanoscaler machine that had to clear benches.

"Nanoscaler engaging in five... four...three...two…" the Colonel, along with Liv, stood by the machinery that controlled the Nanoscaler, "Nanoscaler engaging...now. Nanoscaling in progress."

"Clara, breathe," Liv instructed from her spot, making everyone inside the machine look at Clara. Minerva silently stared at Clara while thinking about both 'Oswalds'.

The cylinder that was the Nanoscaler shrunk to a size where it was almost impossible to see for the human eye.

"Nanoscaling successful. Everyone OK in there?" called the Colonel through the comms. installed in the earpods.

"We made it," responded Journey, "Nobody popped."

"Mm, now I kinda want popcorn," Minerva mused to the Doctor.

"Is that craving?" teased Clara from across. "Is Elias about to get a new sibling?"

"Not funny," Minerva scolded, although it was impossible to be serious when both she and the Doctor were shifting uncomfortably in their spots.

They almost missed the fact they were being carried towards the Dalek.

Almost.

They were injected into the Dalek's eyestalk and soon their entire environment was turned blue. As each member stepped out of the nanoscaler, they felt like the air around them had been sucked out and turned into gravity. They breathed normally, but their speed had peculiarly slowed down. The membrane of the Dalek eye had them going for a couple minutes until they touched Dalek floor.

"That was...weird," Clara sucked in a breath after touching floor herself.

"You've seen nothing yet," Minerva muttered as she walked past Clara, eyes frantically taking in every aspect she could see.

"What are the lights?" Clara pointed at the slow moving lights that began from the eystalk and went down the corridor.

"Visual impulses travelling towards the brain," the Doctor said passively.

"Beautiful."

Minerva threw the brunette a look. This was most certainly _not_ beautiful. In fact, this was probably the ugliest, darkest place one could be at.

"Welcome to the most dangerous place in the universe," the Doctor said quietly, almost summarizing Minerva's thoughts out loud. He could feel her nervousness and a good amount of fear radiating.

Entering the cranial ledge, Journey led the group with a weapon out in case anything happened to pop out. "Here," she called to when she thought it was safe.

The Doctor then stepped around her to go up to the metal-looking walls. Minerva slowly followed and met him by an edge where, below, they could both see a glowing central unit with connecting orange wires around it like a circle.

"What...is that?" Clara soon asked after she saw herself.

"Behold, the belly of the beast," the Doctor breathed in, unconsciously reaching for Minerva's hand beside him.

"It's amazing," Clara said with widened eyes.

"Clara, we need to work on your definition of 'amazing'," Minerva said.

"So how big is it - that living part - compared to us, right now?" Clara asked the two aliens beside her.

"You see all those cables?" the Doctor pointed to the orange cables below.

"Yeah."

"They're not all cables," and he gasped sarcastically afterwards, making Clara laugh.

"Does it know we're here?" asked Ross, still holding his weapon pretty tightly in his hands.

"It's what invited us in," Journey said logically to him.

The Doctor stepped back from the edge and inched closer to the wall that had bars engraved on it. "Now, this is the cortex vault, a supplementary electronic brain. Memory banks, but...more than that. This is what keeps the Dalek...pure."

"How are Daleks pure?" Gretchen raised one eyebrow.

"Daleks don't share the same perspective on the word 'pure'," Minerva said like it should have been obvious. "So quit making that face."

"Dalek mutants are born hating - this is what stokes the fire-" the Doctor pointed at the wall, "-extinguishes even the tiniest glimmer of kindness or compassion. Imagine the worst possible thing in the universe, then don't bother, because you're looking at it right now. This is evil refined as engineering."

"Doc...tor?" called the Dalek itself.

"Oh, hello, Rusty!" the Doctor looked around. "You don't mind if I call you Rusty? We need to come down there with you. Medical examination, and all that."

"What, with all those tentacles and things?!" exclaimed Gretehcn, glancing at the wires just to remember what laid down.

"How close do we have to get?" Journey asked from the two aliens.

"Well, you know, we'll never insert a thermometer from up here," the Doctor said for show.

Understanding, Journey turned to Ross and nodded him to go on. He aimed his gun down and fired a metal hook that stuck on the floor. It was impossible not to hear the scream that echoed as soon as the metal made contact with the creature's floor.

"No. No, no, no, no!" the Doctor dashed for Ross. "Stop! Stop! Stop, you idiot!" But the man arrived too late as Ross shot a second hook below.

Journey pushed the Doctor, looking angry for his imprudence. "We need a way down, the only way…"

"You are forgetting this is a _Dalek_!" Minerva spoke loud enough to cut through everyone's shouting and commotion. "As much as I hate saying it - while it is an evil ugly creature - it _is_ technically _alive_."

"So what happens after you hurt the body?" the Doctor hoped the humans would get the memo now.

Clara gasped first as she realized it. "Oh, God!"

The group began to hear a nearing droning sound from the other end of the corridor. The Doctor backtracked and took Minerva's hand, moving her behind a pillar at the wall.

"Antibodies?" guessed Clara, now feeling pretty afraid.

"Dalek antibodies!" clarified the Doctor, only adding on to her level of fear.

~ 0 ~

From outside, while Liv couldn't hear them, she felt an unexpected surge of fear inside her. She was sure it wasn't her - Daleks couldn't exactly hurt _her_ yet here she was.

~ 0 ~

Floating metal spheres that looked more like eyes reached the group, immediately surrounding Ross.

"Nobody move!" the Doctor ordered "Any attempt to help him, or attack those things, will identify you as a secondary source of infection. Stay still!"

"But the Dalek wants us in here," whispered Clara, "Why is it attacking?"

"Clara, you can't exactly control your antibodies can you?" Minerva made a face, making Clara realize it was of course right.

"Ross, stay calm, we're going to get you out of this," Journey wanted to move but for the moment couldn't really think of a way to help her comrade.

"Can you?" whispered Clara again, but this time only for the Doctor and Minerva to hear. Neither alien looked back at her.

"Ross," called the Doctor, now holding a sorta green pill in his hand, "swallow that!"

Ross caught the tossed pill. "What is it?"

"Trust me."

Ross swallowed the pill. "Now what?" One of the antibodies shot him with a white light, proving to be painful as he screamed until his body was disintegrated.

"ROSS!" cried Journey, in tears already.

"What's it doing!?" Clara watched attentively as a second antibody cleaned up the remains of Ross.

"The hoovering. Gotcha!" the Doctor focused more on his sonic screwdriver in hand.

"What did you give him?" Clara inquired then, suddenly remembering the strange pill.

"Oh, just a spare power cell. I can track the radiation signature! I need to know where they dump the bodies."

Journey was then infuriated. "I thought you were saving him!"

"He was dead, I'm sorry," Minerva spoke up, swallowing hard. "When have antibodies ever made a stop on anyone?"

The Doctor didn't let them discuss further. He grabbed his wife's hand with his free one and ordered the others to run. The antibodies rushed after them, but the group was heading for the signal in hopes of an escape.

They came to a stop in front of a large circular hole that was actually a pipe. "They've dumped him in here - organic refuse disposal," the Doctor lowered his sonic. "We need to get in there."

"Why?" Clara looked in-between him and Journey and Gretchen, the latters firing upon the antibodies.

"They won't give up till we're there, I'm afraid," Minerva sucked in a breath. "I'd like to go down alive than dead - I've got a son to pick up in four hours."

"But you don't know where it goes," Clara tried to argue, but even she had to admit that wherever the pipe led to was more favorable than up there.

"Of course I do," Minerva frowned. "It gets us away from here!"

"Now in! In! In!" the Doctor ushered Clara into the pipe first. They heard her echoing screams as she went down. "Now you, darling," he moved Minerva closer.

"Better be down in one minute, Martian," she warned, even holding one index finger to show the amount she was talking about.

"Yes, ma'am," he nodded and helped her down into the pipe.

As each person slid down they came crashing into slimy, green liquid. Minerva sat upright and lifted her arms with her still-long hair now covered in said liquid.

"What is this stuff?" Clara was trying her best not to throw up there and then.

Minerva was about to answer when more of them came down. She yelped as liquid was splashed onto her face.

"Do I still want to know what is this stuff?" Clara gagged as she saw Minerva spitting some of the liquid out from her mouth.

"It's people," the Doctor answered without a care. He moved over to help Minerva get on her feet. "The Daleks need protein. Occasionally, they harvest from their victims. This is a feeding tube."

With widened, horrified eyes, Journey grabbed liquid and let it slip through her fingers. "Is...Ross here?"

"Yeah, top layer, if you want to say a few words," the Doctor distractedly said, inducing Journey into another rage fit.

She stalked towards the Doctor, pushing him against a wall. "A man has just died, you will not talk like that!"

"A lot of people have died!" the Doctor clarified. "Everything in here is dead, and do you know why that's good?"

"There is nothing good about that!"

"Nothing is alive in here, so, logically, this is the weakest spot in the Dalek's internal security."

"Let go of my husband, please, I don't feel like arguing," Minerva looked to the side.

Journey did as told and backed away. The Doctor moved off the wall and led Minerva to an opening that apparently would lead through a corridor.

"They'll get us out of here," Clara assured Journey and Gretchen. "The difficult part is not killing him before he can - or getting killed by her-" she nodded towards Minerva, "-for wanting to kill him."

The Doctor rmoved the grate that blocked their way and set it on the side. "Bolt hole. Actually, a hole for a bolt. Does nobody get that?"

"Let's just go dear," Minerva patted his arm. "I want a shower."

"Yeah, you do need one," the Doctor sniffed and went first, missing Minerva's glare on him.

"Though she might kill him first," Clara added to Journey and Gretchen as they went after the two.

The next tube they had to go through proved to be a bit more of a challenge as it gradually felt like it was shrinking.

"Are you OK back there?' the Doctor called back to Clara, assuming she would be having more trouble than Minerva despite the fact Minerva was still taller than Clara. "It's a bit narrow, isn't it?"

Clara looked at the indeed narrow tube she hoped to God they would be getting through fast. "Any remarks about my hips will not be appreciated."

"Och, your hips are fine, you're built like a man!"

"Doctor!" Minerva exclaimed, groaning with such tiredness of these comments.

"I haven't said anything!"

Minerva just let it go. The Doctor climbed out of the tube first then went back to help Minerva and the rest.

"What's that noise?" the Doctor asked after helping Gretchen out. "Are you wearing a Geiger counter?"

"Standard battle equipment. That's just low level radiation."

The Doctor eyed her a moment before taking lead again. "But stronger down here, for some reason. Gimme!"

Gretchen handed over the Geiger counter, eyeing him oddly. The Doctor took it without so much of a 'thanks' and then walked ahead.

"I've got it!" he cried after a minute. "I know what's wrong with Rusty."

"OK, that's good," Clara blurted then thought for a moment and glanced at Minerva. "Is that good?"

"Let's find out," the dark-haired alien responded. "Dear?"

"Yes, darling," he turned back for them. "Well, you know how I said this was the most dangerous place in the universe? I was wrong. It's way more dangerous than that."

Clara concluded silently she should not have asked.

"Old Rusty here is suffering a trionic radiation leak," he motioned everyone to follow him. "It's poisoning the Dalek and us. Just as well we're here."

"Really?" frowned Journey, glancing at long corridor they were walking through. "Perhaps we should get out while we can. Why should we trust a Dalek? Why would it change?"

"Good question," praised Minerva.

"Rusty? What changed you?" the Doctor called up to the Dalek that, unbeknownst to them, was watching all of them.

"I saw beauty."

"You saw _what_?"

"In the silence and the cold. I saw worlds burning."

"That's not beauty," Minerva snapped. "That is destruction."

"I saw more."

"Oh, please," she scoffed, "Do go on."

"The birth of a star."

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Stars get born every day. You've seen a million stars born, so what?"

"Daleks have destroyed a million stars."

"Oh, millions and millions. Trust me, we take count," the Doctor sighed.

"And, yet, new stars are born."

"Every time," Minerva waved a hand.

"Resistance is futile."

"Resistance to _what_?" the Doctor grew tired of this obscurity.

"Life returns. Life prevails. Resistance is futile."

Minerva blinked, momentarily shocked. "So...you saw a star being born and you _learned_ something...I must be dreaming." The Doctor could not agree more.

Eventually, they came into a different room where radiation levels were off the rocket. The room was full of sparking cables and whatnot, followed by an eerie golden light.

"We're at the heart of the Dalek," the Doctor said.

"What heart?" asked Minerva, being sarcastic.

"Geiger counter's off the scale," Journey was reading off her own geiger device. "Looks like it's about to blow."

"Good," said the Doctor who started walking ahead.

Journey threw him a dirty look. "How is that good?"

"I like a bit of pressure. Rusty? Can you hear me?"

"Doctor?"

"Rusty! We've found the damage." And true to his word, the Doctor had stepped in front of a large crack on a wall, mildly reminding him of the Pond era with universe cracks. "I'm sealing up the breach in your power cell." He took out his sonic and used it to seal the crack. "No more radiation poisoning, good as new. There. Job done."

Clara raised eyebrow, looking around faintly. "That's it?" she asked, unable to believe it was going to be this easy. "Just like that?"

"An anti-climax once in awhile is good for my hearts," the Doctor said, taking hold of Minerva's hand. "And good for my wife's fear."

"Fear?" she nervously chuckled. "Who says I'm scared?"

The Doctor patted her hand, smiling warmly at her. "Just hang on, darling, we're almost gone." Minerva nodded. "Rusty? How do you feel? Rusty? Rusty? Rusty…"

"The malfunction is corrected," went the Dalek.

But a large spark exploded, causing the group to back away from the walls, seemed to say otherwise.

"What's happened!?" Journey frantically called.

"Not entirely sure," the Doctor admitted, now gripping Minerva's hand.

"It's like it's waking up!"

"Rusty, come on, talk to me, what's going on?" the Doctor called, and loudly, as there was more explosions going on.

"The malfunction is corrected. All systems are functioning."

Minerva's heart lurched inside her chest. "But if all systems are functioning…"

"Weapons charged."

"Oh, no, no, no…" the Doctor crazily looked around.

"Exterminate!"

~ 0 ~

Inside the lab, Liv screamed as the Dalek broke out from its cell. She made herself visible to no one and backtracked to a wall. 'Rusty' didn't waste time in moving to attack the soldiers inside the room.

She knew she was useless even as the Dalek progressed and moved to the desk where it proceeded to send some sort of singal to the Dalek ship fleet. Clara was Liv's landline to the living - but it was not enough to grant her enough abilities to help the humans.

~ 0 ~

Inside the Dalek, everything was grim...and confusing.

"Doctor, what happened?" Clara stepped to where the Time Lord and Moontsay were.

"Do you see?" the Doctor answered with another question.

"Do I see what?" Clara frowned.

"Daleks don't turn good. It was just radiation affecting its brain chemistry, nothing more than that. No miracle."

Journey tilted her head for a second, processing his words. "Let me get this straight - we had a good Dalek, and we made it bad again? That's all we've done?"

"There was never a good Dalek," Minerva clarified. "There was a broken Dalek and it's beem repaired."

This made no difference for Journey. "You were supposed to be helping us!"

"How the hell are we supposed fix something that's not _meant_ to be fixed!?" Minerva surprised them all by practically yelling. "It's a _damn Dalek_ \- what the hell did you all expect!?"

"No more talking, you are done!" Journey pointed at her then stormed away with Gretchen. "OK, new objective. We are taking this Dalek down."

The Doctor noticed Clara staring at him and Minerva with some akin to disbelief. "What's that look for?"

"It's a look that forewarns I wanna slap both of you!" she half-shouted as well, earning herself a very deep glare from Minerva.

"Excuse me?" the dark-haired asked.

"Are we going to die in here? I mean, there's a little bit of you that's pleased-

"I'm not pleased!" Minerva exclaimed, but Clara went on.

"The Daleks are evil after all. Everything makes sense. The Doctor and Minerva are right!"

"Clara Oswald you better take two steps back before _I_ slap _you_!" Minerva snapped. "You don't get to judge me - nor my husband. I watched as these horrible creatures _murdered_ my parents! After witnessing that it's a bit hard to believe that these things could _ever_ have an inch of kindness in them."

The Doctor sighed and gently brought Minerva to his side. "Daleks are evil, Clara, irreversibly so, that's what we just learned!"

Clara took in a deep breath, collecting her words before they delve into another argument. "I can understand that our perspectives differ," she said, successfully keeping herself calm, "because I have not seen what you've seen-" she gestured to Minerva, "-but this is _not_ what we learned today."

"We need to place the charges for maximum effect," Journey returned with Gretchen. "I'm scanning the architecture."

"I wasn't finished," Clara held a finger to her, but Grecthen followed Journey around as they placed charges in different areas. "Why did we come here today? What was the point?" Journey sighed, clearly annoyed by what she thought was a waste of time. Clara then glanced at the Doctor. "You... You thought there was a good Dalek. What difference would one good Dalek make?"

"All the difference in the universe, but it's impossible," he looked away.

"But is that a fact?" Clara gestured with her hands. "Is that really what we've learned today? Think about it! Is _that_ what we've learned?"

In this moment, they missed Journey being contacted by her uncle - asking her to do the worst.

"You should tutor aliens on the side," Minerva whispered, cracking a bit of a smile.

Clara grinned. "They wouldn't be able to afford me."

The Doctor dashed for Journey who had the last charge placed and the controller in her hands. "Whatever you're going to do, don't do it! This Dalek must not be destroyed, we can do better!"

"Are you out of your mind!?" Journey frowned.

"Did you miss the part where we got into the Dalek?" asked Minerva. "We have a chance, and it's never going to come again."

"What chance? I have my orders!"

"Well I'm a Queen and these are your orders - stand down."

"A Dalek is a better soldier than you will ever be. You can't win this way," the Doctor thought to add.

Journey growled and let the detonator go. "Fine! So what do we do?!"

"Something better," the Doctor promised. With a loud call he told everyone to follow him out of the room. They would have to climb the wall leading to a recess that showed the upper levels of the Dalek. "The Dalek isn't just some angry blob in a Dalekanium tank. If it was, the radiation would have turned it into a raging lunatic."

Journey scoffed. "It _is_ a raging lunatic, it's a Dalek."

"But, for a moment, it wasn't," the Doctor pointed at her. "The radiation allowed it to expand its consciousness, to consider things beyond its natural terms of reference. It became good. That means a good Dalek is possible. That's what we learned today. Am I right, teach?"

Clara laughed. "Top of the class."

"But now it's back to how it was," Journey said, failing to see how this could get any better.

"But what it saw - that star - and how it felt are all still there," Minerva said, adding afterwards, "...really deep inside."

"Yeah, I'm not really seeing that."

"Not here. There!" the Doctor pointed upwards.

"You mean in the cortex vault?"

"Every memory recorded," Minerva reminded. "Some suppressed, but all still intact theoretically."

"We need to show the Dalek that star being born again," the Doctor explained. "Recreate that moment."

"And how do we do that?"

"We need to reawaken the memory, basically," Minerva straightened up. "And I'll do it."

"What?" the Doctor immediately frowned.

"They wouldn't know how to do it anyways," Minerva gestured to the other women. "I'm Clever Girl for a reason remember?"

"Yes but-"

Minerva planted a finger on his lips. "I'm going, let's not waste anymore time discussing this."

"So…" the Doctor began, still overly unsure of this idea, "...the Dalek will be suggestible to new ideas. It will be open again. And I will show it something that will change its mind forever!"

"What?" Journey made eyes on him

"Not a clue!"

Journey rolled her eyes at his lack of seriousness. " But this is crazy. There's no way we can get back up there in time!" she flailed a hand upwards to the levels.

"Yes, there is," Gretchen declared, suddenly taking aim with her grappling hook gun.

"No, Gretchen!" Journey's eyes widened. "It'll bring the antibodies down on us."

But Gretchen gave her a look that said she didn't care. "Tell me the truth," she looked at Clara. "Is he mad, or is he right? I've come this far. Probably going to die anyway. Wouldn't mind something to do for the rest of my life. Is he mad, or is he right?"

Clara put a hand a hand on her head, "Hand on my heart...most days he's both."

Gretchen nodded and turned to the Doctor. "One question, then. Is this worth it?"

The Doctor stepped forwards. "If I can turn one Dalek, I can turn them all. We could save the future."

Gretchen took in a deep breath. "Gretchen Alison Carlisle. Do something good and name it after me."

"We will do something amazing, I promise."

"Damn well better," Gretchen said before firing the grappling hook.

"No, Gretchen!" Journey still cried but it was far too late. They could hear the antibodies coming for them.

"Go!" Gretchen shouted.

Journey angrily went to establish some sort of device that would allow them all to be pulled up via the rope. Minerva took Clara's hand and slapped it onto said device.

"Don't look down," she advised the brunette before they were all zoomed upwards.

The Doctor hurriedly left the room as well, leaving Gretchen to fight off the antibodies. In the end, however, she was killed just like Ross.

Suddenly, Gretchen re-opened her eyes and found herself sitting at an elegant table with another woman - Missy - inside a brightly lit room full of various meals.

"Don't worry dear, it's all over now," Missy smiled widely. "All the darkness has gone away now - including the rude Moontsay and Time Lord. They keep surprising me honestly, but that's not the point here." She grabbed a teapot from the table and gestured Gretchen if she wanted some. "I'm Missy. Welcome to Heaven."

~ 0 ~

Minerva led Clara and Journey down the hallway they had originally come through and stopped when they reached the panels.

"So what do we do?" asked Journey, slightly out of breath.

"Clever thing, didn't I say this?" Minerva answered distractedly while examining the panels.

"Look," Clara neared some panels that were colored yellow unlike the brightly white ones above, "Some of the lights are out."

"Could be because it's a damaged Dalek…" Journey reminded.

"No, hold on," Minerva squatted down in front of the darker panels. "Remember, this is a memory bank and some of the memories are suppressed."

"So what if the dark spots are hidden memories?" Clara eagerly asked. "What if one of those is the Dalek seeing a star?"

Journey couldn't believe she was hearing suppositions instead of cold facts. "Seriously?!"

"It's this or wait to be killed - take a pick," Minerva shrugged. She tried pulling the panels and found it came off easily. "Clara, you're in charge."

"What!?" Clara made a face as she watched Minerva crawl inside the opening.

"Meaning, really, just watch out for antibodies."

"Oh, okay," Clara still felt not an ounce better. "How do I do that!?"

Minerva was already crawling through large wires and pipes but could still perfectly hear Clara. "I've no idea!"

Clara wasn't surprised but not happy either.

"I'm in the cortex!" Minerva shouted after a couple of seconds. She slammed a hand over the live wires, intending on turning those repressed memories on, but also received a shock and fell back.

Journey and Clara saw some of the panels flicker back to life, proving the theory right.

Clara leaned into the open panel and called to Minerva. "Are you okay, Minerva?"

Minerva was collecting herself inside and took a deep breath before answering. "Yeah. I think there was some sort of energy charge."

"You got the first lights on, though!"

"Of course, it's a brain," Minerva slowly looked at her surroundings, letting the pieces fall together. "Brains work with electrical pathways linking up memories!"

"So it's working right?" Clara dared to ask for a confirmation.

"Oh it's working alright!" Minerva laughed and continued crawling.

Journey began seeing the antibodies getting closer to them and couldn't help panic a little. "You'd better get a move on, there's company coming!" She took aim at the closest and began shooting.

Clara flinched with each fire. She leaned closer to the panels again and shouted, "I don't mean to push, Minerva, but if you could really hurry up!"

Minerva was crawling over larger tubes and coils now, excitedly searching for the missing memory. "Show me a star, Rusty!" She slapped a hand on the panel, ignoring the spark of electricity she got afterwards.

"Minerva!?" Clara nervously called as she the antibodies growing in numbers. Journey would only be able to fight them off for so long.

"Almost done! One more to go!" Minerva assured as she neared the last panel. She slammed her hand over it and instantaneously the antibodies' lights went out like a light bulb.

Clara beamed. "Minerva, you did it! It's rebooting. The antibodies have reset!" True, the antibodies' gathered light one more time then left.

Minerva released a large breath and let her head hang for a moment. Hopefully now the Doctor would come up with something clever to stop the Dalek.

If Minerva knew the Doctor had merged his mind with the Dalek's she probably would've been furious. He intended on showing the Dalek more galaxies being born, but in the end the only thing the Dalek took out from it was the utter hatred the Doctor had for Daleks.

And so, Rusty ventured to exterminate the Daleks invading the building...successfully.

~0~

After Minerva, the Doctor, Clara and Journey returned from their 'trip', they took good notice of all the destruction the Daleks - including Rusty - set forth on the building.

"Clara!" Liv rushed towards her landline and encased Clara in a big hug. At the same time, Journey went to greet her uncle.

"I have transmitted a retreat signal," declared the now-neutralized Rusty. "The Daleks will believe the humans have initiated the ship's self-destruct."

Clara pulled away from Liv to look at the Dalek. "What about you, Rusty?"

"I must go with them."

"Of course you must," the Doctor muttered. "You've unfinished work, haven't you?"

"Victory is yours. But it does not please you."

"You looked inside me and you saw hatred. That's not victory. Victory would have been a good Dalek."

"I am not a good Dalek. _You_ are a good Dalek."

Minerva latched her arm around the Doctor's, leaning closer to him, and watched as the Dalek took leave. Neither felt they had anything left in the place and so as soon as Rusty was out of sight, they headed for the doors leading back to the TARDIS

"Till the next time," the Doctor barely said in an audible tone.

Journey blinked at that uncordial goodbye. "Are they leaving? Aren't they going to say goodbye?"

"I think that was it," Clara admitted and walked to the door where the aliens had gone through seconds earlier. She peered through the window and saw them long gone. "Yep, that was it. Sorry, got to run!"

Liv wiggled her fingers at the rest and disappeared.

"We have to pick up Elias," Minerva said to the Doctor as they neared the TARDIS.

"Doctor! Minerva!" Journey called for them and when they glanced back they saw her running towards them. "Doctor! Take me with you."

The Doctor looked down at Minerva for a second before going up to Journey. "I think you're probably nice. Underneath it all, I think you're kind and you're definitely brave. I just wish you hadn't been a soldier."

Minerva waited for the Doctor to get inside the TARDIS then glanced at Journey. "Do me a favor, and get yourself out of this place. Visit a planet. Something." She gave a small smile and followed into the TARDIS.

~0~

After a shower - for everyone - Clara made a hasty retreat into the console room wearing a red and black plaid coat over a red sweater and black skirt with matching tights and shoes. "How do I look!?"

The Doctor was boredly leaning on the console when he took notice of her. "Sort of short and round-ish, but with a good personality, which is the main thing."

" _Doctor_ ," Minerva scolded, holding Elias as she came down the staircase from the gallery. "She meant her clothes. They're different."

"Oh, good for you," the Doctor yet again looked at Clara, "Still making an effort."

"Oh for goodness' sake," Minerva mumbled and set Elias on the floor.

Elias giggled and ran - or wobbled - towards Clara. "Ca-yah!" He was holding a little sunflower in his hand, courtesy of Martha Jones' backyard garden.

"What do you have there, El?" Clara bent down in front of the toddler.

"Dere!" Elias held the sunflower to Clara's head.

Liv appeared and laughed. "Where'd you get that from?"

"Yeah, Martha's not happy about this one and Eli picking out flowers from the garden…" Minerva briefly explained, causing the other two women to laugh.

Clara took the sunflower and positioned it behind her ear. "Thank you, El. How does it look?"

"Boo!" Elias giggled and ran away, coming up to Minerva's arms. He covered his mouth and continued to giggle.

"Thanks," Clara sarcastically said, even rolling her eyes.

"OK, right, you're back in your cupboard, 30 seconds after you left," the Doctor said to Clara.

"When will I see you again?" Clara asked while heading for the doors.

"Oh, soon, I expect. Or later," the Doctor said in thought. "One of those."

"All I'm saying us that kid over there better still be one and a half when I come back," Clara jokingly warned and opened one of the doors. She paused and stared at the Doctor for a long moment, feeling the urge to answer his original question. But, she saw him getting distracted by Elias and Minerva and couldn't bring herself to interrupt. She left without saying a word.

"I don't know," Liv found herself blurting, causing the three aliens to stop and look at her.

"I'm sorry?" Minerva frowned.

Liv seemed clearly confused but she ventured to say what was so suddenly flashing in her mind. "The Doctor asked if he was a good man and the answer is...I don't know. But I think you try to be and I think that's probably the point."

The Doctor was surprised to hear this coming from her but nonetheless accepted her opinion. At least he believed it to be _her_ opinion she was expressing.

"I'm sorry," Liv put some fingers over her mouth, eyes on the side as she tried to understand what had happened. "I don't...I don't know why I said that…"

"Liv…" Minerva said, but the blonde shook her head and disappeared. This wasn't the first time Liv felt emotions she was certain didn't belong to her. Minerva didn't understand where they came from...but she wasn't going to let it slide any longer.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

This was always a creepy little episode to me not gonna lie. But, here we have the beginnings of 12! We start seeing the little differences especially because I always see 12 being just a tad ruder than his previous incarnation. Like, he doesn't mean to be rude he's just being honest and because Minerva has always had incarnations that do care about being rude or not...they're gonna clash more than ever. But...it does get interesting and I'll explain once we hit that part ;).

 **13TH DOCTOR SPOILER WARNING** : If you've seen who is our 13th Doctor then I suppose you're all in shock as am I xD. In honesty, I preferred a male Doctor but Jodie really seems to already be nailing the Doctor role in her trailer so I'm more than definitely giving her the chance she deserves. Doctor Who has always been about change and, lets be honest, it's going to be pretty freaking interesting how they'll introduce her! However, in regards to fanfics, that would now mean that either I change my OCs into males during Jodie's period or I leave them be. Thoughts in general? I'd love to see what you guys think about all this! Just, please, be respectful of other's opinions. You are definitely allowed to prefer a male doctor, as well as prefer a female doctor, but you are NOT allowed to bash on others for it.

 **For Reviews:**

Thank you so much! As for the Missy/Minerva action, they'll definitely have their moments but I think it would be better to leave them for the end. Though nothing is set in stone as I always go back and edit some things before I publish so who knows! Thank you and have a nice day too!

I'm excited to show 12 because there's a little evolution for both him & Minerva that I think could only be shown at this incarnation stage. You'll see what I mean further down the story! Oh, their moments in the finale will be quite interesting ;)

Thank you! If you mean like strictly-canon Doctor from TV I think they would clash so much lmao. Because, as I've said, Minerva is sort of more level-headed and conscious of what she says whereas the Doctor (whether it's 9/10/11/12) don't really care. I especially see her clashing more with 9 and 12 because, from my perspective, I feel like they're the two new who incarnations that are more honest-blunt. Does that make sense lol? I hope it did xD

* * *

That's it for now lol. Next chapter we have Robin Hood with a little twist...and the title cover will definitely be up next time I update (in 2 weeks!). Leave a comment if you'd like!


	3. Robot of Sherwood

"And this is my grandmother, Isadora," Minerva finished introducing Clara to her long line of human family, all currently visiting Isadora Lozano's residence.

Clara was beyond nervous meeting the people she knew were most important for Minerva and the Doctor. It was like when you met a boyfriend's parents for the first time. First impressions mattered. She stuck a hand for the elderly woman and smiled widely. "Clara Oswald...ma'am…"

"Don't do the ma'am thing," Liv was right beside her, but invisible to everyone except Clara. She found it was easier to be around her family without having to hide her emotions when only Clara was able to see her. It was difficult enough, seeing everyone who believed her to be dead, but this way...this way was a little less hard. Liv knew that the idea of her still being alive but at the same time not being alive would be complicated for her family to understand. She just didn't want to put them through that, and much more because she knew that eventually she would fade away. She didn't know how it would happen, nor when, but Liv was sure it would one day...and she didn't want to die twice for her family. They didn't deserve that. Just like before, Liv felt like her life as a human was a closed chapter for her family that needed to stay closed.

Minerva respected the idea, but she didn't agree with it. Still, she, along with the Doctor and Clara went along with Liv's wishes,

Isadora chuckled at Clara. "You don't have to do the ma'am thing, dear." Clara wished she could give Liv a 'really' look but at that moment it was best if she didn't. She just nodded, and rapidly too. "So we finally get to meet the new human in the TARDIS," Isadora said, looking pretty damn excited herself if Clara had a say in it. "It's been quite long, you see."

"Amy and Rory have been gone for centuries, grandma," Minerva reminded.

"For _you_ ," Isadora pointed. "For us it hasn't been so long. Very difficult for all of us - we've come to love everyone who meets my granddaughter and the Doctor."

"Like family?" Clara guessed.

"Exactly," Isadora chuckled.

"Minerva?" called the woman's pseudo-uncle from the living room. Seconds later, Aaron Lozano walked into the kitchen along with the Doctor. "Are you sure this is the Doctor? He doesn't do much of the…" he gestured to his own mouth.

"The laugh?" Minerva instantly got it, making a face. "Yeah, he's very serious this one."

"That's a first," Aaron sent a look at the Time Lord.

"I can be serious," the Doctor raised his hands. "I just don't find things as amusing as before."

"I'd say it comes with the age but you've always been old," Aaron crossed his arms.

"Uncle Aaron, are you saying that I'm old too?" Minerva frowned.

"Let's not go through that, Minerva," Aaron sarcastically smiled. As Minerva was about to snap, her adoptive father came in through the kitchen glass doors holding Elias.

"Look who caught an apple all on his own?" Nicolas Souza bounced his grandson - as he called the toddler - gently.

"Me!" Elias cheered and bit into his apple.

"Elias," chuckled Clara, "I think maybe you should have your Mum cut that up for you." Elias frowned at her and chucked his apple at her, hitting the side of her head. Clara looked not remotely amused, yet not an ounce surprised. "He doesn't like me very much," she told the others.

"No," the Doctor took his son into his arms, "He's just very playful. You're like a...big sister for him."

"I don't see him doing that to River or Jenny, Doctor," Clara pointed out and picked up the fallen apple from the floor.

"I love Ca-yah," Elias giggled and let his head fall over his father's shoulder.

"And he purposely calls me Ca-yah just to bug me," Clara playfully pointed at the toddler. "He can say 'Clara' perfectly. I know he can."

Elias continuously shook his head, repeating his 'no' over and over until there was a doorbell ringing. He gasped and started squirming in the Doctor's arms. "Eli! Eli! Eli, here!"

"That's probably Martha," Minerva chuckled as she watched the Doctor forcibly put Elias down. The moment the toddler's feet had touched the floor he dashed out of the kitchen, yelling 'Eli' as loud as possible.

"Does he mean Martha's daughter?" Clara inquired, suddenly feeling nervous again.

"Yeah," Minerva said as they all began walking out of the kitchen. "Elizabeth and him are like glue - inseparable."

Upon opening the door, they found Martha Jones (Smith) and her husband Mickey Smith with their young daughter Elizabeth. As they were let in, they heard another girl's voice hollering for them to keep the door open. It was ten year old Tamara and her older sister, Stacey.

Clara had never felt herself so overwhelmed with meeting new people. But the stranger thing was, as she got to know the people she felt more at home. It didn't even matter that their stories were old memories of theirs with Minerva and/or the Doctor, she didn't feel like an outcast.

"Have you seen them fight until she uses her powers?" Donna Noble, who had arrived about an hour later, via vortex manipulator, inquired from Clara.

"They do that?" she asked with widened eyes. Donna, Martha and Stacey laughed till they could no longer. "They do that…" Clara concluded on her own, wondering if she would ever witness that on her own.

"Ca-yah," she then heard Elias calling for her. She looked to the side and saw him approaching her with Elizabeth Smith at his side.

Elias patted Clara's knee and looked at Elizabeth, who was intently staring at Clara. "Eli...Ca-yah…"

"I'm being introduced, apparently," Clara chuckled at the two toddlers.

"Hi," Elizabeth squeaked, looking pretty shy of the new woman in front of her.

"Hi there, pretty," Clara leaned down. "Are you Elias' best friend?"

"Aha..."

"I'm telling you we are looking at the next generation of star travelers," Stacey said when the two toddlers ran away.

"Elias and Elizabeth?" Martha made a humorous face. "I don't think so!"

"I can babysit them!" Tamara said from the other couch. She'd been busy watching television. "We can be like the golden trio from Harry Potter, only you, know, there's no one wearing glasses."

"Minerva said they once took you out on a trip," Clara looked at the young girl. "Is that true?"

"Mhm!" Tamara beamed at the memory. "I met Vincent Van Gogh with Amy! It was so much fun...but then bad things happened."

"They always do, don't they?"

"Yeah, but, the Doctor always does what he does best - try to save people. I wanna go into the world and save people to," Tamara smiled. "That's why I wanna go with Elias when he's grown up."

"By the time Elias is a grown up we're all gonna be dead," Stacey gave her a logical look.

"Nu-uh cos Minerva and the Doctor sometimes spend hundred of years in the TARDIS while it's only been like two months for us."

"She's got a point," Donna nodded. "Remember the story of Rose Tyler? How the Doctor accidentally took her away for a year?"

"That happened?" Clara blinked, thanking God the Doctor had learned some time driving lessons now.

"You clearly haven't heard Amy's story, then," Tamara chimed in. "The Doctor told her he and Minerva would only be away for five minutes but accidentally came back 12 years."

Clara did her best to look shocked. Of course she'd heard the story...from Liv.

"But it's worth it," Martha smiled. "I got to meet a famous doctor, you know."

"I went to the Flapper era," Donna added her own experience.

"I know Amy got to visit Van Goh and then Rory went to some author…" Stacey said, still mildly in thought.

"And Stacey got to go on an alien planet," Tamara reminded then looked at Clara. "Where did you pick to go, Clara?"

"Um…" Clara thought long and hard, but realized that none of the adventures she had in the TARDIS had been by her choice. Unbeknownst to her, Minerva had been hearing from her spot near the kitchen while having her own conversation with Mickey.

~ 0 ~

As dinner neared, everyone slowly inched closer to the kitchen until they would finally enter. It was such a loud house Clara wondered how the Doctor would take it at times considering his new more serious incarnation. She supposed family made exceptions - if not then it was all because of Minerva. She noticed at one point, however, that Liv had vanished and then reappeared later on but away from her. Leaving her current conversation with Stacey, Clara neared Liv.

The latter was standing in front of a furniture piece that held many family photographs. As Clara got closer she could depict a few to be Minerva's father, uncle, grandparents...and Liv herself.

"This is you," she spoke in a hushed tone so that no one would overhear. She didn't wanna appear like she was talking to air - not in the middle of these people.

Liv watched her pick up a small portrait of the Souza family. "That was such a stressful day. My mother wanted the perfect picture but Minerva wouldn't stay still."

"That's Minerva!?" Clara felt she had risen her voice too much and quickly looked around at the others, relaxing once she saw no one had heard. She then studied the photo in her hands again, specifically at the toddler sitting on the seven year old Liv's lap.

"This was when she turned herself human," Liv explained.

"And this was your Mum, right?" Clara tapped on the brunette woman sitting on an edge.

"Yup, that's her," Liv sighed.

"This was you when you were...Olivia Souza," Clara smirked as she picked up another photograph, this one only of Liv. She was in a cheerleader outfit and striking a pose. "The cheerleader…"

Liv rolled her eyes. Clara continued looking at the picture, really considering the idea that once upon a time Liv was _alive_ and had a _life_ before meeting her. She'd been a girl, a student, a cheerleader, a daughter...she had been another living human on the Earth.

"It's okay, Clara," Liv's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. Liv was now facing the room, watching the guests with what one would call resignation. "I had a life - a short one - and it ended. I made peace with it a long time ago. Right now I'm just a ghost hanging to a thread-"

"Hey," Clara meant to joke but her teary eyes betrayed her attempt to be casual. At times she was just so used to the idea of Liv being her imaginary friend she forgot Liv was actually _dead_.

"I'm just passing through," Liv cleverly revised her words. "I'm not afraid to leave this world, not anymore. When the time comes, I know I'll have the person I want to say goodbye to right beside me."

Clara had to force herself real hard not to cry during a lively get together. She looked away, blinking rapidly to clear some tears away before anyone noticed.

"Clara?" Tamara poked her head out from the kitchen. "Dinner's ready!"

Clara gave a nod and quickly put down Liv's picture on the shelf. She realized Liv had disappeared once again and thought it best for the moment. She didn't wanna burst into tears in the middle of dinner.

~0~

"More! I want more!" Elias continued to repeat as the trio of aliens and Clara entered the TARDIS. His eyes were trained on the plate of Isadora's famous snickerdoodles carried by Clara. "Ca-yah, more!"

"Sorry little guy, your mum said no," Clara apologetically smiled.

"Boo, Ca-yah!"

"Clara, those are for you to take home," Minerva handed Elias to the Doctor, hoping he was get distracted by something his father showed him and forget the cookies.

"All of them?" Clara looked down at the foiled-covered plate in her hands.

"They're delicious and I've got another batch in the freezer," Minerva waved it off. "Right then, that was the family, you are officially part of us now."

"Not that I'm not excited," the Doctor began, only to have the two women scoffing at him, "does anyone want to take a little fun trip?"

At that moment, Liv appeared. "Sign me up!" She excitedly raised a hand.

"Why don't we let Clara choose a place?" Minerva innocently asked, flickering a couple console buttons to get the TARDIS moving.

"Clara?" frowned the Doctor.

"Yeah, I don't think we've ever given her a moment to choose."

"Alright, fine," he shrugged then looked at Clara, the latter stunned by this opportunity. "Take a pick. Wherever, whenever, anywhere in time and space."

"You're not joking?" Clara looked from one to the other.

"Nope," Minerva shook her head.

"You've eavesdropped."

"Yup."

"I get to pick? For real?"

"Yes, Clara. Pick."

The smile on Clara's face warned the two aliens this was a thought that had already passed through her mind. "Well...there is something, someone that I've... always wanted to meet. But I know what you'll 'll say he's made up, that there is no such thing."

"Go on…" the Doctor suspiciously looked at her.

Clara's widened smile looked like it would crack her face as she grew more and more excited. "It's... It's Robin Hood."

"Robin Hood?" The Doctor asked, sharing a look with his wife who was equally surprised.

"Yeah! I love that story! I've always loved it, ever since I was little!"

"It's true," Liv nodded her head.

"Robin Hood, the heroic outlaw, who robs from the rich and gives to the poor?" the Doctor needed to make sure this was the man they were discussing.

"Yeah!"

"He's made up. There's no such thing."

"Well, now hold on," Minerva looked up from the console to think. "Legends have turned out to be sort of true in our experience."

The Doctor gave her a look. "You're not actually entertaining the idea Robin Hood is real?"

"I didn't say he was real. I just mean maybe we shouldn't jump to conclusions."

"Minerva, we read fairytales to our son - they're meant to entertain the young. And hopefully put them to sleep," the Doctor looked at his more-than-awake son in his arms.

Clara rolled her eyes, totally unsurprised this was his reaction. "And what about you?"

"Me?"

"Yeah, you. You stop bad things happening every minute of every day, that sounds pretty heroic to me." Clara then glanced at Minerva, hopefully for some back up. "Or am I wrong?"

Minerva seemed to be siding with her when she shook her head. "No, I think you got it dead on."

"Don't help her, Minerva," the Doctor had unamused eyes on his wife.

Chuckling, Minerva raised her hands in neutrality. "I'm only giving my opinion. But if you wanna put this 'Is he real or not?' battle, let's go check it out."

"He's not," the Doctor declared sharply.

"But what if he _is_?" challenged Clara.

"He's not. What about Mars?" He started heading towards a new subject. "The Ice Warrior Hives!"

"You said it was my choice," Clara quickly turned to Minerva, "Isn't it my choice?"

Minerva gave a slow nod. "Yea, it's your choice. Doctor, it's her choice."

The Doctor childishly groaned but nodded in defeat. He came up to the console where Minerva was already defining their point of destination. "Earth. England. Sherwood Forest. 1190 AD...ish."

"But you'll only be disappointed," the Doctor have a final warning to Clara.

~0~

When the Doctor had enough of waiting around for Minerva and Clara to finish dressing up for the era, he made it a mission to go out first and see for himself there was nothing out there that would remotely be Robin Hood. Liv decided to go out with him and see how things played out. They had materialized in the middle of a bright green forest under a sunny day. The only noises were that of singing birds and of a nearby brook running.

The Doctor stepped out and took the scenery in with a scoff. "No damsels in distress, no pretty castles, no such thing as Robin Hood!"

But not a second afterwards an arrow struck the door of the TARDIS, making the Doctor jump in place.

"The Arrow?" Liv snorted and looked out to see the culprit. Both she and the Doctor were surprised to find a man - dressed in all green with a matching hat and longbow - standing up from behind a tree, across the brook.

"You called?" the man shouted from across.

Liv released an unceremonious laughter. "Oh, Clara's gonna be thrilled!"

The Doctor busied himself with the arrow stuck on his box.

"Very, very nicely done with the box, sir," the man started crossing the brook. "I saw a Turk perform something very similar at Nottingham Fayre. It's a trick with mirrors, no doubt?"

"A trick?" Liv mused.

"A good jest," the man laughed.

The Doctor turned around, angrier than ever as he held the arrow in his hand. "This is not a trick, this is a TARDIS."

"Whatever it is, you bony rascal, I'm afraid I must relieve you of it."

Liv raised her eyebrows, highly amused. "You wanna steal the TARDIS now?"

"It's my property, that's what it is!" The Doctor frowned.

The man took a hop onto the log over the brook serving as a makeshift bridge. "Well, don't you know all property is theft to Robin Hood?"

"You're not serious," the Doctor raised an eyebrow, wondering if he was being pranked right now. It wouldn't be the first time Minerva pulled something like this to make a point.

"I'm many things, sir, but I'm never that. Robin Hood laughs in the face of all," and to prove a point, he laughed.

"And do people ever punch you in the face when you do that?"

"You're so grouchy," Liv said to the Time Lord. "Lighten up - it's Robin Hood!"

"Doctor!" they heard Clara call from the TARDIS. She wore a bright orange medieval gown with long sleeves and a silver forehead crown. Her hair had extended by several inches and was curled. She was fighting the urge not to laugh as she hurried up to the two. "You're gonna want to see this!"

"By all the saints!" gasped Robin, his eyes trained on Clara and the box. "Are there any more in there?"

Precisely at that moment Minerva stepped out...along with little Elias donning the traditional Robin Hood costume complete with the crossbow.

Liv began to laugh the moment they saw him. "That is just adorable!"

The Doctor seemed mortified as he watched his son run around being Robin Hood. Minerva locked the TARDIS and calmly walked up to the trio, also donning medieval attire. It was simpler and darker than Clara's with a velvety blue running all around and her silver necklace around her neck.

"Is that Robin Hood?" she peered around the Doctor to the stunned Robin still on the brook bridge. "See, dear, he _is_ real."

"I know!" Clara actually squealed at the sight of her story book hero.

The Doctor was still stuck on his son, eyes following him. "You dressed our son like an idiot…"

Minerva looked at him, seeming surprised. "Yes, well, no - I dressed him like Robin Hood. Keep up, dear."

"Why? _Why_? Would you dress Elias up like him?"

"Because he's adorable, that's why," Minerva made a face.

"Me! Me!" Elias had stopped near the brook to see Robin Hood.

The Doctor mumbled something about 'you've got to be kidding me' under his breath as he ventured to retrieve his son. "That is not Robin Hood, Elias."

"Well, then who, sir, is about to relieve you of your magic box?" Robin Hood challenged.

The Doctor had Elias in his arms now and frowned at the new challenge. "Nobody, sir. Not in this universe or the next."

"Well, then put down the boy and draw your sword to prove your words," Robin whipped out his own silver sword and pointed it at the Doctor.

The Doctor looked down at Elias who offered his toy crossbow for the fight. He silently walked back to Minerva and handed the toddler over.

"You're not gonna do this, are you?" Minerva asked a question she already knew the answer to.

The Doctor backtracked to the brook, unbuttoning his black jacket. "I have no sword." He made a turn for Robin to see himself. "I don't need a sword. Because I am...the Doctor." He pulled out a black glove and put it on while discreetly showing one special finger at Robin. "And this...is my spoon!" He had a larger spoon hidden in his jacket's pocket. "En garde!"

"Go, Daddy!" Elias clapped for his father as the match unfolded.

The two men exchanged parries before the Doctor got an advantage and pushed Robin back. Robin wasted not a minute more and advanced on the Doctor only to pass right beside him...and get hit on the head with the spoon.

"Ow!" Robin rubbed the top of his head with a big frown.

"He's...actually good at this," Liv mused with surprised, widened eyes.

"My Martian's good at everything," Minerva corrected with a dreamy smile.

"Oh good, feed that enormous ego of his," Clara rolled her eyes.

Having heard his wife, the Doctor smirked. He passed Robin again and hit him on his bottom with the spoon.

"Oh...you!" Robin grew tired of this match and swiped his sword, able to cut a button off the Doctor's jacket.

"Oi!" Minerva hollered from her spot. "I love that jacket!"

The Doctor was also very irritated and came up with a final blow. He straightened up and stretched his arms out on either side. Robin took this as the final spar and headed for him with the sword. The Doctor blocked the sword by passing right beside Robin and knocked him into the water.

"Doctor!" Clara gasped and ran forwards.

Elias and Minerva cheered for their winner and followed Clara to the brook. She stopped at the edge and put Elias down, taking hold of his free hand.

"Like I said... _my_ box," the Doctor polished his spoon and put it back in his pocket.

"Doctor…?" Clara grew nervous as she saw no sign of Robin in the water.

The Doctor bent over to check himself and missed Robin popping up from behind. Robin pushed the Doctor into the water and laughed loudly, along with Clara and Liv.

"Doctor!" Minerva meant to run but she stayed back for Elias. Soon she saw her husband pop his head up from the water. "Doctor, are you alright?"

Elias laughed excitedly and slipped his hand out of Minerva's. "Me too!" He exclaimed happily and ran straight into the water.

Minerva nearly had a heart attack. "ELIAS!"

The Doctor swam fast and grabbed the toddler who took no notice of the terrible danger he'd put himself into. "El, that wasn't smart!"

"Fun," the toddler cleverly responded with, leaning for the water and sliding his hands in it. The Doctor made a face but slowly agreed this was probably his genes acting up in the kid.

~ 0 ~

After getting properly dried - and Elias getting a change out of his costume - Robin Hood took the group to his cave where Clara was delighted to meet the rest of his men.

"Let me introduce you to my men," Robin led Clara closer. "This is Will Scarlet. He is a cheeky rogue with a good sword arm and a slippery tongue."

"My lady," Will made a bow for Clara but it was short lived as the Doctor appeared behind and pulled out some of his hair.

"Argh!" Will slapped a hand to his head. "What do you want with my hair?"

The Doctor was scanning the hair with his sonic. "Well, it's realistic, I'll give you that."

Robin continued on with the greetings. "And this is Friar Tuck. Aptly named for the amount of grub he tucks into!"

"You skinny blackguard!" Tuck made a move for Robin but nearly slipped when the Doctor snatched his sandal right from his foot. "What are you doing!?"

"This isn't a real sandal!"

"Yes, it is."

The Doctor took one sniff of the shoe and agreed. "Oh, yes, it is."

"This is Alan-a-Dale," Robin moved onto the third man holding a lute in his arms. "He's a master of the lute, whose music brightens up these dark days."

Alan made a point to prove by singing. "Stranger you are welcome here, in Sherwood's bonny glade - ow!" the Doctor had stuck a syringe in Alan's arm.

And a second later, Elias was at Alan's feet, his small hands making gestures for the lute Alan held. "I want to try!"

Minerva made a long sigh at the sight. "My boys, everyone," she shook her head.

"Blood analysis," the Doctor weakly argued his defense. "Oh! All those diseases! If you were real, you'd be dead in six months."

"I _am_ real," Alan frowned.

"Bye," the Doctor smiled widely and indeed walked away.

"How do you dare take them out in public?" giggled Liv while Minerva wearily went up to take Elias into her arms again.

"I have leashes...I might start to use them."

"And this...is John Little," Robin gestured to a larger man. "Called Little John. He's my loyal companion in many an adventure."

Clara walked up to shake hands with John but gasped and laughed out of surprise when a little man popped out from behind 'John.'

"Works every time!" Will shook his head.

"Oh, I cannot believe this," Clara covered her mouth with her hands as she looked at Robin. "You...really are Robin Hood and his Merry Men!"

"Aye! That is an apt description," Robin latched onto those words. "What say you, lads?"

"Aye!"

"Stop laughing!" the Doctor commanded. "Why are you always doing that? Are you all simple or something?" He grabbed a goblet and dumped its contents to the side. "I'm going to need a sample," he walked straight up to Robin.

"Of what?" Robin eyed him and the goblet suspiciously.

"Enough," Minerva grabbed the Doctor's arm and yanked him back to have a private word with him. "Now you listen Martian, I am getting very tired of this new behavior of yours."

"My behavior?" the Doctor made a face.

"Yes! Now this is one important trip for Clara and you are not going to ruin this for her!"

"But Minerva, they're not real!"

"Oh, shut up!"

"It could be a theme park from the future. Or we might be inside a miniscope."

"No, we're not-"

"A miniscope! Yes, of course! Why not?"

"Doctor, I am talking!" Minerva was careful not to raise her voice in front of their son. "And the least you could do is listen to my opinion. Am I not worth it anymore?"

The Doctor gave her a look of 'really?' and took a moment to calm down. "Of course you are, but you have to understand that this fairytale cannot be real."

"And why not? It's a lovely story, and it just so happens to be real."

The Doctor considered her words, truly, but the more he looked around the more he was convinced that it wasn't real. Something was off.

"What is wrong with your friend?" Robin neared Clara again, eyes on Liv who remained in her modern clothes she was always in.

"Hey-" Liv pointed a sharp finger at the man, "-they're called jeans and I'm comfortable."

"Don't worry about her," Clara patted Liv's arm. "And, sorry about, um…" she gestured with another hand towards the Doctor with Minerva.

"He doesn't seem quite of the real world…"

"No. No, he's not really, not most of the time." Clara agreed with a small laugh. "But, uh, dark days? You said that these were dark days, what did you mean?"

"King Richard is away on crusade, my lady. His tyrant of a brother rules instead."

Clara grew excited when she really shouldn't have. "And the Sheriff? 'Cos there is a sheriff, right?"

"Aye. It is indeed this jackal of the prince's who seeks to oppress us forever more," Alan sighed.

"Or six months in your case," interjected the Doctor.

"DOCTOR!" Minerva slapped a hand over his mouth, uncaring of the large wince he gave underneath.

"It is a shame to dwell on murky thoughts... when there is such beauty here," Robin gestured to the place.

"Why are you so sad?" Liv inquired.

"Why do you think me sad?"

"Quite easy," Liv gave a sway of her head. "The Doctor's right about this one thing - you laugh far too much."

"You know, I do not live this outlaw life by choice. You see before you...Robert…"

"Earl of Loxley," Clara blurted at the same time he did and apologetically smiled. "Sorry, do go on."

"I erm... I had my lands and titles stripped from me. I dared to speak out against Prince John. But I lost the thing most dear to me."

Clara had detected a string of worse pain along those last words. "What was she called?"

Surprised, Robin gasped. "You're so very quick! How does the Doctor stand it?"

"Marian?" Clara couldn't help giggle as Robin looked at her with shock.

"You know her?"

"Yes. I have always known her."

"It was Marian who told me that I must stand up and be counted. But...I was afraid. Now this green canopy is my palace and the rough ground my feather bed. Maybe one day I will return home, but until that day...until that day it is beholden on me to be the man Marian wanted, to be a hero for those this tyrant sheriff slaughters."

"What time is it, Mr. Hood?" called the Doctor who had pulled Minerva's hand off his mouth.

Robin looked up at the sun to answer. "Somewhat after noon."

"No, no. Time of year? What season?"

"Oh, Dame Autumn has draped her mellow skirts about the forest, Doctor. The time of mists and harvest approaches."

"Autumn?" Now even Minerva deduced something was actually off. "But how can it be autumn when it's all green?"

"And too sunny," the Doctor added.

"So?" Clara dreaded Minerva becoming like the Doctor for this trip. She never wanted to think of a world where Minerva became like the Doctor in this incarnation. That was sure to be a sight.

"Have you been to Nottingham?"

"Climate change?" Liv tried.

"It's 1190, Liv," Minerva reminded.

"You must excuse me," Robin said, going to his men. "The Sheriff has issued a proclamation and tomorrow there is to be a contest to find the best archer in the land. And the bounty...it's an arrow made of pure gold."

"No! Don't go! It's a trap!" Clara quickly exclaimed, but received an uproar of laughter.

"Well, of course it is! But a contest to find the best archer in the land? There is no contest."

"You certainly think of high of yourself," Minerva mumbled.

"And he was bantering - I am totally against bantering," the Doctor looked away.

"Yeah, you are," Minerva rolled her eyes, swaying her head at him.

The Doctor deeply sighed at her. "When did you start believing in impossible heroes?"

"...ask the young princess you entranced centuries ago," she sweetly smiled, much to his surprise.

~ 0 ~

The 'Lord Sheriff' was indeed hosting an archery contest in which all were invited. Several targets were positioned at a fine distance from where the archer would stand in the gardens of the castle. There was already a large audience awaiting to see the participants of the contest.

"In the contest for the golden arrow, after ten rounds, the battle is betwixt our Lord Sheriff... and the stranger known as Tom the Tinker!"

Robin stepped forwards holding his crossbow and bowed elaborately while Clara applauded along with the audience. Liv stood right beside them, invisible to all except Clara and Robin.

"Take your places!" the Herald commanded as the famous Sheriff approached Robin.

"Shall we make the contest a little more interesting, my Lord?" Robin challenged. "The targets seem a little close. What say you? Another 20 paces?"

"Why not?" the Sheriff agreed and motioned to two soldiers to move the target back. He then took place and aimed, firing the bow to make a perfect bullseye on the target. "Now, Tinker. Let us see thy true face."

Robin made a face and took place to aim. He shot and actually split the Sheriff's arrow in two as it made it into the center of the target.

"Ye Gads! He has split the arrow!" the Herald was in awe much like the rest of the crowd. "Truly, he is the finest archer in all England! Come forward, Tinker, and claim your prize." He took the golden arrow meant for Robin and stepped down from the dais.

When Robin was about to take the arrow, someone else shot an arrow and split Robin's arrow on the target.

The Doctor stepped forwards, with Minerva and Elias a couple inches behind. "I am the Doctor. My skills as a bowman speak for themselves. I claim my reward."

The Herald soon turned to the Doctor to hand over the arrow. The Doctor took it and studied it for a couple of seconds. "A mere bauble," he concluded and threw it to the side. "I want something else."

"Mommy, my turn?" Elias tugged on Minerva's hand and pointed to the arrow on the ground.

"Absolutely not," Minerva shook her head and held his hand tighter. She didn't want him running away from her again, and certainly where there were far more people.

"Name it," the Sheriff told the Doctor.

"Enlightenment."

Meanwhile, Robin hadn't stayed put. Shooting another arrow at the target, he split the Doctor's arrow.

"Are we really going to do this?" Minerva sighed from her spot and watched as the Doctor shot another arrow which ricocheted off two soldiers' armor before making the target.

Robin shot another arrow, once again making the target.

"ENOUGH!" Minerva shouted and thrust a long-sleeved arm towards the target. Ice burst from below and encased it entirely before making it crumble into bits and pieces.

"Fascinating," the Sheriff concluded before shouting the order, "Seize her!" to the soldiers.

"Minerva - what did you do that for!?" the Doctor turned around, highly alarmed. This had not been part of their plan.

"Ending this quicker before I lost my head with you two," she rolled her eyes. She looked not remotely afraid of the new circumstances.

"Clara - what are you doing!?" Liv had caught Clara trying to use a heavy lance.

"I'm fine, you know I take Year Seven for after-school taekwondo!"

"I think it's completely different here!"

"Don't worry, Doctor," Robin rushed to the Time Lord and his wife, "I'll save her!"

"I really don't need saving, though," Minerva softly interjected but the Doctor cut in as well.

"I can protect _my_ wife thank you very much!"

"Actually, I don't need saving-" Minerva tried again but it seemed like her words were just going over the men's heads.

"For I am Robin!" the man chucked his hat and received quite a cheer from the audience as he went to fight with one of the knights. However, he sliced one's arm and revealed a set of _circuitry_.

The Doctor hurried to go pick up the arm and look at it. "Robot!" He then saw the robot's helmet diving in half vertically as it opened sideways, revealing a metallic yet humanoid face underneath. A blue lighted slit at the forehead - as well as a matching one of the nose - opened up. "Now we're getting somewhere!"

"Take them!" ordered the Sheriff. "Kill the rest! Kill them all!"

The robot soldiers fired rays up at the crowd, instigating a running chaos. Minerva shook her head at this, looking more annoyed than afraid. "We surrender!" she exclaimed for the Sheriff to hear.

"What?" Robin turned on her but the Doctor knocked his sword off his hand. "You miserable cur-"

"HEY!" Minerva pointed at him, " _Not_ in front of my son or the next thing I ice will be your mouth."

"Run!" Robin turned his attention to his men that had stood at a distance. "Flee, lads, flee! Live to fight another day!"

"To the dungeons with all of them!" the Sheriff commanded, and with ease the group was taken custody by the robot soldiers.

"What the hell are you all up to?" Liv demanded from all of them - still invisible to the rest of the normal humans - as they were led towards the castle.

"Quickest way to find out anybody's plans - get yourself captured," the Doctor smirked.

~ 0 ~

"Splendid! Enchained!" Robin said to his new environment.

The cell room was dark and grim, and oddly smelt. The group, except for Liv of course, had been chained to separate posts. Elias sat on Minerva's lap, his small wrist shackled to that of his mother's wrist. He was positively bored.

"Trussed up like turkey-cocks! Thanks to your friends," Robin gave hard eyes to the two aliens.

"I _know_ you're not looking at _me_ that way," Minerva said while looking straight ahead at the door.

"Well I had the situation well in hand!"

"Long-haired ninny versus robot killer knights, I know where I'd put my money," the Doctor rolled his eyes.

"If you had not betrayed me, I would have been triumphant!"

"Listen Robin, I love your stories but you against those robots would have been a disaster," Minerva snapped. "You would be a little puff of smoke and ashes."

"Ha!"

"Don't 'ha' my wife!" snapped the Doctor. "Without us, you'd have been floating around in tiny little laughing bits in people's goblets.

"Balderdash! Ha!"

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Oh, right, here we go, it's laughing time!"

"Well, you amuse me, grey old man!"

"Mommy, laughing time?" Elias asked, of course baffled with the grown men's arguing. What was wrong with laughing?

"Your father is against laughing now," Clara rolled her eyes.

"Guard! He's laughing again!" the Doctor called to the door. "You can't keep my family and I locked up with a laughing person."

Clara had a pleading look on Minerva. If there was anyone to stop them, it was the bloody Queen of the Monsoon.

"Oh, I find that quite funny. Do you know, I feel another laugh coming on," Robin mocked a good laugh then. "Ha-ha-ha!"

"Guards, we cannot remain in this cell!" the Doctor shouted louder. "Execute me now!"

"Doctor!" Minerva exclaimed, gesturing to the now terrified Elias on her lap.

"No, hang on," the Doctor amended fast. "Execute _him_!" He nodded to Robin. Why should he leave his son fatherless when the fool sitting beside him had nothing to offer.

"I do not fear death, so execute away!"

"Execute him! I'd like to see if his head keeps laughing when you chop it off!"

"Oh, Robin Hood always laughs in the face of death!"

"Yes, rolling around the floor laughing, I'd pay good money to see that! Guard!"

"Guard!"

"Guard!"

"Guard!"

"WILL YOU SHUT UUUUUUP!" Minerva furiously screamed at them. Both men meekly stopped and looked at her. Never had the Doctor heard her scream like that, and so now he knew that she was truly annoyed. "I would expect _you_ Doctor to understand that there isn't anyone actually out there."

The Doctor raised an eyebrow, but said nothing out loud. _'You realize of course you're wrong, right?'_

 _'Shush, I'm working on something. Play along._ '

"I did, in fact," Robin tried to say but he was no match for the Queen.

"No, you didn't, be quiet," she snapped. "The Doctor and Robin Hood locked up in a cellar. Is this seriously the best you can do? You're determined to starve to death in here squabbling. Now that's fine for you two, but my son eats at a regular time."

"Do any of you have a plan?" Clara curiously looked at Minerva specifically. "No offence but I sorta thought you would've iced these already…" she nodded to the posts they were chained to.

Minerva smirked silently, warning her she did indeed have a plan.

"Smart sister," Liv beamed from the door. She peered outside through the small window. "I hope you know there actually _is_ someone out here."

Minerva acknowledged the words but made no comment on them. "You men, are idiots. Neither of you have plans do you?"

"Yeah, of course I have a plan," Robin quickly interjected, but Minerva scoffed.

"Sure thing - and the Doctor likes pears too."

"Eugh," the Doctor made a sour face. "I too have a plan, though."

"Can you explain your plan without using the words 'sonic screwdriver'? Because you might have forgotten the Sheriff of Nottingham has taken your sonic screwdriver, just saying."

The Doctor had truly forgotten that bit.

Minerva was in the middle of giving him a look when the door burst open to reveal a guard. They all missed the two aliens' smirk with their surprise.

"See? There was a guard," Robin said to them. "There was guard listening the whole time, I knew it. Ha-ha-ha-ha!"

"Liv told you that," Clara narrowed her eyes on the man for a second. Liv shook her head and followed the guard who could not see her.

"The Sheriff himself commanded me to listen, to find out which of you is the true ringleader," the guard explained.

"Ah, so he can do the interrogating. Very wise," the Doctor remarked, Minerva humming with agreement.

"Excellent. He will get nothing from me!" declared Robin, and the Doctor was quick to make his own stance.

"No, no, no, he will get nothing from _me_ , because interrogation, that's where I always turn the tables. You see, that's the plan."

Liv rubbed her temples. "They're giving me a headache - and I'm dead!"

"Em, Doctor?" Clara cut into the two mens' argument to make them realize the guard had already made his decision and unchained Minerva - along with Elias."

"And this is why _I_ am Queen," the dark-haired woman sweetly smiled at them.

"N-n-n-n-no!" the Doctor pulled on his chains as Minerva and Elias were led out of the cell . This hadn't been part of the plan! How was he going to let his wife and son meet with this loony sheriff on their own!?

~0~

A large, wooden dining table was the set for the Sheriff's questioning. There were various courses of meals set from one end to the next. Burning candles and a large fireplace gave light to the room.

"Eat, my Lady, eat," the Sheriff gestured to Minerva who sat sat at the other end of the table. "Let it not be said that the Sheriff of Nottingham is a poor host."

With a dead-serious face, Minerva straightened up, put her hands together on the table and replied, "Let's get one thing straight here. The only reason I'm entertaining this little-" she pointed with a finger at the meals, "-charade is because of Elias." She nodded to Elias who had been sat on a chair right beside her and was so focused on eating the plate she served him. "My son was hungry."

"You are refreshingly...direct," the Sheriff said in amusement. He reached for a small table beside him where everyone's confiscated belongings were. He took a block of something wrapped in plastic and waved it at Minerva. "Taken from your friend's strange tunic." He then exchanged it for the Doctor's spoon. "An intriguing gallimaufry. Including...this wand," he had picked up the Doctor's sonic. "Evidently a thing of awesome power. Tell me...are you from beyond the stars?"

Minerva arched an eyebrow, seeming surprised. "I thought that had been clear when I destroyed your pitiful targets."

Once more she has amused the man.

She checked on Elias but found he was stuffing his face with bread. Clearing her throat she glanced back at the Sheriff. "Sheriff, when my son finishes so are we. So tell me something good before I decide I've had enough and crush your home."

"You think you could win?" asked the Sheriff, picking up a knife suddenly.

"Well let's just say to shield yourself from my powers you would have to be highly advanced on technology," Minerva tilted her head, giving a small smirk. "Which...you aren't. All you have to offer me is your story about the mysterious lights in the sky."

The Sheriff raised his eyebrows. "How do you know about that?"

"I'm from up there," she whispered, raising a finger upwards. "And they came with the mechanical men who brought promises…"

"Tell me _your_ story," ordered the Sheriff, making Minerva scoff loudly.

"I think not _not_. You have to go first."

"Why so?"

"Because great men always precede."

"You have a point…"

Minerva rolled her eyes. How easy it was to get men to talk when one stroked their egos. "Your story, then."

The Sheriff rose from his chair and slowly walked towards Minerva. "Once upon a time, there was a brave and clever and handsome man unappreciated by his royal master."

"Mm, then came the lights in the sky, and everything changed," Minerva smiled up at him.

"The skyship came to Earth in a fury of fire!"

"You mean a _crash_?"

"A craft from the heavenly spheres, bedight with twinkling lights and miracles beyond imagining! The most beautiful thing the brave and handsome man had

ever seen."

"And I suppose the mechanical men saw you as their natural leader?" Minerva discreetly noticed him getting far closer to her.

"It was I and I alone to whom the mechanical men then imparted their secrets. Shortly, I shall be the most powerful man in the realm. King in all but name, for Nottingham is not enough."

Unsurprised, Minerva glanced up at him. "Oh, it's not?"

"After this... Derby!" the Sheriff declared.

"Then...Lincoln. And after Lincoln…"

"The world," Minerva said at the same time the Sheriff had, rolling her eyes afterwards at how predictable he'd been.

The Sheriff raised an eyebrow at her, this time impressed. Minerva smirked and reached for the plate of grapes near Elias' plate.

"I've been a war strategic, Sheriff," she explained. "I know how the mind works in these cases. So-" she popped a grape into her mouth, "-tell me what the hell you're still doing in Nottingham?" she crinkled her nose. "And why, oh why, are you bothering to squeeze the pips out of the peasants if you've got a skyship on stand-by?"

"Enough questions," the Sheriff said. "I'm impatient to hear your story."

"Hm," Minerva slowly reached for a utensil on her other side. "I don't have much to tell."

"Could start with who you are…" the Sheriff made the wrong move of leaning on the table beside Elias, "...and this little fella…" He had barely a minute to look at the toddler when Minerva slammed a knife's point on the table, mere inches from his pinky.

" _He_ -" she began in a loud, angry voice, "-is my _son_." She stood up and ignored the frightened man's look. "And you will do best to step _away_ from him."

She made a step forwards with such a fury that, for the moment, the Sheriff backed off. She went around her chair and picked Elias up into her arms, kissing his ginger hair while still upholding her fury.

"Mommy," Elias shifted in her arms to look up at her, "back Daddy?" he didn't like this man very well. He was sure if his Daddy was around the man would not be so close to his Mommy.

"Absolutely," Minerva answered with a trained look on the Sheriff. "We're done here... _Sheriff._ "

~0~

The Doctor, Clara and Robin had, meanwhile, managed to get out of the cell and into a sophisticated metal room thanks to Liv who'd managed to unchain them before losing her tangible abilities. Turning out to be a part of a spaceship, the Doctor became excited and began to investigate. He was puzzled to find that the destination was, once more, "the Promised Land". Furthermore, they discovered the ship was disguising itself as the castle they were now inside of. And it was damaged. _So_ damaged.

In the middle of the Doctor's full blown accusation on Robin concerning his existence, two of the earlier robots walked in and fired to get them all together. Behind them walked the Sheriff and Minerva.

"Dear, I hate when you go exploring without me," Minerva playfully rolled her eyes and walked straight for the Doctor. The Time Lord immediately took her and Elias into a hug and a quick evaluation of their health state.

Meanwhile, the Sheriff zoomed on Robin.

"Surrender, outlaw! Kill him. Kill Robin Hood!"

"You can drop all that stuff now, Sheriff," the Doctor calmly said to the man. Minerva gave him a serious look, to which he responded, "He is not what you think he is. This is all play-acting."

"What are you talking about?"

"He's overly convinced Robin Hood is a fake device plot set up by the Sheriff," Liv explained.

"We can't just let them kill him!" Clara exclaimed and ran to help Robin behind.

"You're not fooling anyone, Sheriff," the Doctor remained firmly convinced.

"Doctor, I don't think it's fake-" Minerva was in the middle of saying when one of the robots fired at Robin.

They all jumped and saw that it had missed and instead hit the wall and caused some ruptures.

"Clara!" Liv nearly lost it when Clara purposely placed herself between Robin and the robots.

Things grew worse when Robin latched an arm around Clara as a blockade. "What the hell are you doing?" she asked with widened eyes.

"Surviving!" And just like that Robin plunged backwards into the lake along with Clara.

"CLARA!" Liv screamed and ran for the window, as did the rest.

No one saw a sign of either Robin nor Clara. However, both Minerva and the Doctor saw Liv disappear and reappear at the shore across where Robin had pulled out an unconscious Clara.

Knowing their companion was safe, the two remaining aliens turned to business.

"Stop pretending," the Doctor ordered, much to the Sheriff's confusion. "You and your fancy robots. I get it, I understand."

"Oh, so you too know my plans?" the Sheriff asked, amused. "The woman here-" he gestured to Minerva who frowned, "-believed she did too."

"I don't _believe_ , darling, I do know it," Minerva smugly corrected him. "It's easy to get a man to do what I want. You're a monkey in comparison to the rest."

The Doctor turned a very offended face at her. ' _What so I'm an advanced subject?'_

Minerva rolled her eyes and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Don't get insecure, dear."

The Doctor didn't look too pleased yet continued with the topic. "You and your robots are plundering the surrounding countryside for all it's worth. Gold." And then it hit him. "Gold! Of course! Gold! You are creating a matrix of gold to repair the engine circuitry!"

"Kinda clever," remarked Minerva.

"This is the scheme the Mechanicals have devised," the Sheriff explained. "Soon this skyship will depart. Destination... London. There I will obliterate the King and take my rightful place as ruler of this sceptered isle!"

"Except it probably won't work," the Doctor walked over to the control panel where he had turned on the screen. "There's not a chance. I've seen the instruments. There's been too much damage. You are stoking up a gigantic bomb!"

But the next thing that happened was the robots knocking the Doctor out. Minerva gasped and ran towards her husband but the robots turned in her direction. She stumbled into a stop, clutching Elias closer to her.

"Now whether you follow voluntarily or we knock you out - along with your kid - is entirely up to you," the Sheriff sarcastically said, opening his arms to both sides.

Elias scowled and stuck his tongue out at the Sheriff. "Boo!"

~ 0 ~

When the Doctor reawakened, he immediately noticed his chained wrist on the wall behind him. The cavern of a room he was in was quite stuffy and warm, and it didn't hit him until he felt a small hand pushing on his arm.

"Daddy, help!" Elias cried in fear as he pointed with his free hand up to his mother who seemed to be unconscious.

The Doctor realized the room was getting to be too much for Minerva (temperature-wise) and gently shook her. "Minerva!? Darling, wake up!"

"She's been coming in and out," a new woman's voice spoke up, making the Doctor see a younger brunette squatted down beside him. "Mumbles something about it too hot?"

"Of course it's hot, it's melting _gold_!" the Doctor snapped and returned to Minerva. "C'mon, Clever Girl, wake up. We gotta get out of here."

Minerva sniffed and blinked awake, revealing reddish eyes that matched her cheeks. "You're awake," she beamed at the Doctor, although her tone of voice indicated she was not all there yet. "We've got a problem, you know…"

"Yeah, I've noticed," the Doctor slowly nodded, putting a hand on her forehead.

"It might be a little hot," she looked to the side, "Messing with my mind you know…"

Two robots walking by carrying a large golden circuit caught the Doctor's eye.

One of the robots said, "Engine capacity at 48%. Engine capacity at 48%."

"It's not enough. That's not enough!" the Doctor called to them. "It'll never make orbit. That's the engines...building in power. Stupid, stupid Sheriff!" He pulled on his chains and tried Minerva's as well. "Agh! Go on, give!" But no such thing happened. He then noticed the brunette staring at him oddly. "What are you looking at?"

"Dear, she can help," Minerva leaned a hand on his arm. "I'd ice our way out of these things but-"

"Save your strength," he quickly shot it down. He motioned to the woman still standing to come closer. "You want to get out of here?"

"Course I do, who wouldn't?" she nodded.

"Great, then help us get out of these things," he nodded to the chains. "My wife first."

"Elias," Minerva pointed down at Elias sitting on her lap, his tiny wrist chained to her wrist.

The woman went to unlock the toddler using some sort of tool she picked up from the ground. As she did, however, she began to ask questions - the questions anyone in her place would have done.

"Basically, the Sheriff is taking all the gold in town to, uh, fix an engine of sorts…" the Doctor left it at that. He was a bit preoccupied with Minerva's condition. She would be fine but the heat would make her slow and that would not bode well in an escape plan.

"Gold to fix something?" the human woman raised an eyebrow, apparently confused.

"Replace, really," the Doctor swayed his head in thought for better word choices.

"The Sheriff's using the gold to replace something?"

"That's the bit," Minerva smiled and even more-so when she saw Elias' being freed.

"So what can we do to stop him?" the woman inquired, automatically moving onto Minerva's chains.

"You would fight?" Minerva eyed her.

"I think we all would," the woman lightly scoffed and worked even fiercer on the chains. "You just gotta tell us what to do."

"What we need is a little riot," the Doctor declared, quietly for anyone could overhear and ruin the plan.

"But the robots…" the woman began, now moving onto the Doctor, "they shoot some sort of, um…"

"Lasers," Minerva finished for her, holding Elias closer to her. "They shoot lasers, don't they?"

"No problem," the Doctor had one of those quirky smiles that told Minerva this plan of his would be childish and rambunctious.

And so, when the robots came to 'release' the three aliens in order to put them to work they revealed they were already free. Upon firing at them, the Doctor was quick and pulled a gold tray the woman had brought them to reflect the laser back on the robot, instantly destroying it.

"Minerva, behind me!" the Doctor shouted as the rest of the peasants in the cavern began to fight using the same tactic with the golden trays. Minerva safely put Elias on the Doctor's back, forcing the young toddler to latch his small arms around the Doctor's neck.

They went around the cavern, bringing down each robot they came across...but there proved to be a lot more than anticipated. Several peasants were blasted to the ground from the robots.

Now Minerva did her best to tail the Doctor around, keeping a steady hand on Elias' back in case the moving was too much for him. They were nearing the extinction of the robots in the room but some got clever and hid for a moment.

"Another one!" someone cried as a robot stepped forwards, threatening to shoot. Quickly they assembled in a makeshift manner to beat the robot.

"A couple more," the Doctor beamed at the quick success rate. He held a tray to the incoming robot but Minerva saw another one coming from behind. She quickly looked around for a tray to use, though the severity of the heat was finally getting to her. With shaky hands she ransacked closest to her for anything but was unsuccessful.

She glanced at the Doctor to see him deflecting another robot's laser, and though she mustered some of her powers, the robot was still able to shoot at her. She let out an agonizing scream.

The Doctor whirled around, forgetting his son was quite literally clinging to him. "Minerva!"

Unsuccessful with the first blow, the robot powered up to shoot again but this time the Doctor blocked it off with his tray and made it explode into bits. He then refocused on his wife who'd fallen to her knees, arms wrapped around her stomach. "M-Minerva, let me see, please-" he unwrapped one of her arms and saw it was too late to do anything.

It was glowing blue.

"Mommy…" Elias' shaky voice rang through the Doctor's ears as he quickly turned Minerva's other hand.

"Step away, Martian," Minerva struggled to speak in one go. Her lips curled into a tight smile as she tried pushing down the incoming regeneration energy. "I-I can't...h-hold in for long…"

"O-okay, I…" the Doctor helped her up, shaking himself. He should have seen that robot coming and defended her right away!

Minerva gave a last chuckle after hearing some of his buzzing thoughts in her mind. "You don't go blaming yourself now. I'll just...I'll just be a m-m-moment - ah," she clutched her stomach again.

Elias began to sniffle and reach with one hand towards Minerva. "Mommy! Mommy!"

The Doctor's eyes could have matched his son's in regards to tears. But he remembered perfectly well what happened the last time she had actually, properly, regenerated. The struggle. The screams - oh god the _screams_.

"I'll be firmer this time," Minerva once again saw into his mind. She leaned forwards and kissed him. "I've got it," she promised.

The Doctor relinquished her hand he'd latched onto during their kiss. He reached behind for Elias and moved to hold him properly. "I'll be here, darling, for when you…"

Minerva lightly smiled, winking at him. "You better be."

The Doctor sucked in a shaky breath and stepped back, regaining some confidence as he shouted at the others. "Everyone STEP BACK!"

The peasants noticed the strange blue glow coming from Minerva and immediately backed away. Minerva was looking at her hands and arms, tilting her head. She seemed fascinated by the process, as the last time she'd done it was centuries ago. Since then she had learned new techniques and far more about what she could do with her energy.

Eyes flickering to the incoming robots, she smirked. "Everybody BACK OFF!" She ordered turned for the nearest flock of robots. "They're _mine_."

The regeneration expelled from her with a burst, shining far too much for anyone to see a thing. The Doctor shielded Elias as best as he could and hoped for a shorter regeneration. He did not want to hear her screams again.

All the energy was expelled in sequential directions. Minerva had properly disintegrated every robot that had neared her vicinity while some of the peasants took care of the lingering ones. When it was all done, and the glow had faded away, everyone curiously looked at a new woman that had come forwards.

The Doctor pushed his way through the peasants to get to closest and see his wife. Even Elias was swatting people away with his small hands.

"I don't like this smell," a distinctly American voice declared. Hazel-green eyes flickered from one spot to the next while crinkling a delicate nose. "The smell is putrid and it is _hot_."

"Minerva?" the Doctor searched for any signs that would show of a coming coma.

Minerva immediately smiled. "I told you I wouldn't be long. How do I look?"

The Doctor rushed forwards and hugged her, kissing her new set of short, wavy blonde hair. He couldn't believe this had just happened despite holding his wife's newest incarnation.

"By God you two are strange," the woman who'd helped them escape had broken them apart with her voice. She seemed not a bit scared at them judging by her wide smile. "But you saved us!"

"That's great...now get out," Minerva said with the widest smiles. "This place is dangerous."

The woman nodded and hurried off. At the same moment, they heard the computer announcing the engines were at 82%.

"You are indeed an ingenious fellow, Doctor," the Sheriff walked in with two more robots behind him.

Minerva immediately frowned. "Oh, _you_ again…"

"She's a curious one," the Sheriff pointed at her, making the Doctor step in front of his wife. "Ice powers and...morphing?"

"That's only what you've seen," Minerva rolled her eyes.

"Now do you really think your peasants' revolt can stop me?"

"I rather think you're the revolting one around here," the Doctor snapped and gasped. "Banter! I'm bantering!" he turned to Minerva, looking actually surprised. "Listen to me!"

"You only banter with me, mister," Minerva warned. "And you-" she took on an angry, yet cool voice, "-if you try to fly with your stupid non-functioning ship, you'll wipe out half of England."

"Liar!" snapped the Sheriff, but it appeared this Minerva was not up for snaps.

"Don't shout at me because you know you're wrong - moron. You better shut down those engines before we do. It won't be pretty if you let us get there first."

"Are you threatening me?"

"No, I'm sweet talking - whaddyah think!?" Minerva scowled his way, but felt a jab at the side of her head that distracted her.

"Minerva, take it easy," the Doctor wrapped an arm around her, watching her struggle through a minor headache. "Your body needs to rest."

"Not until we get out of here with Clara and Liv," she sucked in a breath and forced her eyes open.

"You give us Clara back and maybe then we'll consider a nice ending for you," the Doctor warned the Sheriff.

"I don't have Clara," the Sheriff rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, well, Robin's one of yours and he has her airgo _you_ have her!"

"What did you say?"

"He's one of your tin-headed puppets, just like these brutes here."

"Robin Hood is not one of mine."

Even Minerva was growing tired of this because it meant she was on the same side as the Sheriff. "Doctor, we've been over this-"

"Of course he is," the Doctor said to the Sheriff. "He's a robot, created by your mechanical mates."

The Sheriff made a face. "Why would they do that?"

"To pacify the locals, give them false hope. He's the opiate of the masses."

Now the Sheriff was beyond confused, even glancing at Minerva for some clarification. "Why would we create an enemy to fight us? What sense would that make? That would be a terrible idea."

"Yes! Yes, it would-" the Doctor stopped middway when he realized that _did_ sound completely ridiculous. "Wouldn't it? Yes, that would be a rubbish idea. Why would you do that? But he can't be... He's not real. He's a legend!"

Minerva shook her head. "Yes, Doctor, because Robin Hood is real."

"Legend!"

Upstairs appeared the 'Legend' himself and gave a haughty laugh. "Too kind! And this legend does not come alone!"

Clara poked herself around him and waved. "Hiya!"

The two climbed over the railing and with a dagger of Robin's they got down by cutting a banner down.

"Right then," Clara sarcastically released a breath after reaching the ground. She saw the Doctor and Elias, but of course failed to see the Minerva she knew.

"It's me Clara," Minerva sarcastically waved.

"Oh my god you regenerated," went both Clara and Liv (who'd appeared at the right moment) at the sight of her.

Robin took no notice as he went directly to challenge the Sheriff. "My men have taken the castle!" Robin meant a warning. "Now I'm going to take you."

"Shouldn't we stop this?" Minerva looked after the two men who were slowly distancing from them.

"You regenerated!?" Liv moved up to her, too shocked to focus on anything else.

"Yes, Liv," Minerva rolled her eyes, about to explain when the ground rumbled underneath them.

"Doctor…" Clara looked around trying to locate the origin of the shake.

"We don't have long," the Doctor mumbled, intently watching Robin and the Sheriff fighting. "The whole castle's about to blow."

"Whole castle!?" Clara became even more alarmed.

Meanwhile, Robin and the Sheriff had the brightest ideas of getting on the beam that was right above the crucible full of melted gold.

"I'm too much for you, outlaw!" laughed the Sheriff as he kept trying to jab Robin. "The first of a new breed. Half man, half engine! Never ageing... Never tiring…"

Robin rolled his eyes. "Are you _still_ talking?"

The Sheriff replied by cutting over Robin's arm, making Robin let go of his sword which then fell down. Robin was mortified as he watched his sword go down but one look at the Doctor reminded him he now knew a better way to win. Straightening up, he held his arms wide out awaiting for the final blow.

"Bow down before your new king, you prince of knaves!" the Sheriff came forwards and was tricked by the same move the Doctor had done on Robin. Robin bumped him and caused the Sheriff to fall over...into the crucible.

Robin slid down a rope and walked over to the time travelers holding his injured arm. "Sorry. Was that, er, was that showing off?"

"That was amazing!" Clara praised with a laughter that echoed in the room.

"C'mon, run!" the Doctor said instantly after the ground shook again. He held Elias with one arm and took Minerva's hand with the other.

They made it into the forest where the rest of the peasants and Robin's Merry Men awaited. There they all saw the castle crumble and release the spaceship from one of its towers.

"It's never going to make it," the Doctor stared up into the sky. "Not enough gold. It'll never make it into orbit."

"So let's give it the last gold it needs," Minerva resolved and looked at Robin urgently. "Where is it? Where's the golden arrow?"

Robin immediately called for his friend. "Tuck!"

Minerva made a sour face as Tuck came forwards holding the golden arrow. "You took it?"

"Of course we did. We're robbers."

Rolling her eyes but smiling, she took the bow and gave it to the Doctor. Clara watched them, confused. "Doctor, what are you suggesting?"

"Golden arrow. It might just be enough gold content to get the ship into orbit and out of harm's way," the Doctor transferred the arrow to Robin while Minerva retrieved the bow.

"It has to be you. My arm is injured," Robin gestured to his arm he still held onto.

"He's not good," Minerva said as another reason for Robin to take the arrow and bow.

"What?" frowned Clara. "But we saw him. I mean, he won the tournament before you blasted it!"

"He cheated," Minerva smirked at her husband. "We made a special arrow with a homing device."

Clara didn't even act surprised. "Right, let me have a go," she took the bow and arrow collectively.

"You?" scoffed Liv. "You do taekwondo! That's not the same thing as this!"

"Alright," Minerva's loud voice cut through everyone's commotion. "Work together, people."

"She's right," Robin nodded, looking at the Doctor. "Perhaps we can manage another way."

The Doctor moved to hand Elias over to Minerva but hesitated. Rolling her eyes, Minerva took Elias without asking. "For God's sake, Doctor, I can stand."

"You're mouthier," he commented, getting a smirk back from her.

The Doctor, Clara and Robin got down on the ground and helped Robin shoot the arrow while holding each side of the bow. Robin directed the arrow straight for the ship and managed to pierce the hull of the ship. They watched the spaceship reach the sky and go further, and when it blasted they began to cheer.  
Through the cheers erupted Alan's singing and flute but Will took it away from him and caused a mini-play fight.

"My turn?" Elias asked his mother while pointing at the flute.

Minerva wearily smiled, something the Doctor saw. He returned to her side, ready to take care of her like she needed. "Time for home, darling." He knew she was tired when she said not a word of denial.

~ 0 ~

The next time Minerva opened her eyes, she recognized the softness of her pillow and bed, as well as the warmth from her blanket. She rubbed her eyes and sat upright to see she was in her bedroom inside the TARDIS. It was a blur of how she'd gotten there but she assumed it had to do with the Doctor taking her there. When she rubbed her hair she got a whiff of cavern and crinkled her nose. It appeared she would be more susceptible to odors now.

She got up from bed and straggled towards the armorer to retrieve some better, comfortable clothes. She'd been placed in bed wearing her period dress and needless to say it was dirty and uncomfortable. After showering, which in fairness was quicker now due to her shorter hair, and putting on a pair of bright, silk pajamas, she stepped in front of the bathroom mirror.

Leaning forwards she stared at her own eyes, figuring them to be a shade of hazel with spots of green. She gently passed one hand through her blonde curls and blinked in surprise, processing the fact she no longer had her long hair style. She raised her hand, however, and saw that her silver outlined crescent moon was still there. That was her signature, apparently.

"Minerva?" she heard the Doctor call from the other side.

"Mommy!" came Elias' fear-quaked call not a second afterwards. There was the sound of pitter-patter and soon enough, there were light knocks on the bathroom door. "Mommy? Mommy!"

She immediately opened the door and walked out to find Elias anxiously standing on the side, in his blue onsie, with widened eyes.

"Mommy's okay?" he quickly asked, reaching for her hand.

Minerva saw the Doctor standing by the bed, holding Elias' teddy bear. He too was asking the same question, but in silence.

"My boys overreacting," Minerva picked Elias up and kissed his hair. "Of course I'm okay."

"Are you?" the Doctor asked when she approached him. He helped her sit on the bed, on her side, before taking a seat himself.

"The nap helped me a lot," Minerva assured.

"Mommy changed," Elias had sat down on Minerva's lap and was now reaching for one of her short curly strands of hair.

"You know we can do that, El," Minerva stroked his hair. "Both Mommy and Daddy can change if we're really hurt. And we can change into anyone next."

"Not sick?" Elias looked between his parents, trying to understand in his own way what it meant 'to change'.

"Not sick," the Doctor handed him his teddy bear.

"Me change too?"

"Oh don't even think about it," Minerva laughed. "I don't ever want to see my baby boy have to 'change'."

"Mommy and Daddy no change too," Elias cleverly responded with, impressing his parents.

"I've no intention of changing anytime soon, El. I promise," went the Doctor first.

"Same here - I forgot how weird it felt," Minerva pretended to shiver. "I didn't know what I was going to get next. Though I do have to admit that the shorter hairstyle wasn't in my plans."

"You still look wonderful," the Doctor reached to touch her hair. "Reminds me of your first incarnation, you know."

"Yeah, except she had a pretty, young face!"

"I still see that girl in you. But she's grown up, and that's okay."

"Aren't you sweet," Minerva leaned her cheek on his hand. "Lately, your behavior's been a little haywire. I didn't think you'd want to be sweet anymore."

"Only with you and Elias of course," the Doctor promptly said.

"So..." Minerva began to look around, feigning innocence, "...would...would kissing still be on the table, then? You've been very, um...distant...lately...are you not about the kissing like laughing now?"

"Oh you wish," the Doctor almost blurted. "Me - the Doctor - _not_ kiss Kaeya? That's not even remotely funny, darling."

"Well, it's just...this incarnation of yours is a tricky one!" Minerva pouted.

"Grumpy," Elias giggled, recalling the words he'd heard over the day.

"Minerva," the Doctor scooted closer to her, dead serious, "No matter what my incarnations are, I will _always_ want to hold you and kiss you."

A warm smile spread across Minerva's face. "Care to give these new lips a taste, then?"

"Well since there's a child in the room...only a preview," the Doctor smirked. He leaned forwards and gently kissed her. He only pulled away when he heard Elias' small "eugh" beside them.

"Preview's nice," Minerva said with a flushed face.

"Alright, time for sleep, Minerva," the Doctor got himself away from her to keep himself in control of himself.

"Yes, sir," Minerva pretended to salute.

"I help!" Elias crawled off Minerva's lap and sat down at the middle of the bed. "Mommy, lay here," he patted her pillow.

"Will my boys stay until I sleep, then?" Minerva asked him and glanced at the Doctor as well.

"Absolutely," the Doctor had begun moving to his side, despite still wearing his usual attire. "Where else would we be?"

Minerva chuckled and laid on her side, already beginning to feel more of that weariness that still plagued her from her regeneration. "I love you my boys, always," she breathed lightly and closed her eyes, not a minute later falling asleep.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** What's this...Minerva _regenerated_? Did you guys expect that one? ;). I have to say that now that I've written 4 incarnations of Minerva (including this new one since I've written ahead) this new incarnation is definitely my favorite so far. This new incarnation will definitely pull all the ropes of the main arc between her, the Doctor  & Missy (and even Clara). I really hope you guys like her too once you get to see how she acts!

So, this new Minerva - who is now on her 4th incarnation - will look like the actress _**Calista Flockhart**_. She'll have wavy, blonde hair that reaches just above her shoulders and will have hazel eyes with hints of green. She'll be taller now, probably reaching to the Doctor's ears (as a visual), making her the tallest of all her previous incarnations.

And now you guys can see the cover of the story! I couldn't update it until we had the version of Minerva that actually matched the one on the cover! Hope you guys like it! Pay especially close attention to the different hues of blues and gold...because as we know...each is the respective color of the Moontsays...and the Time Lords...what could that mean? ;)

 **For the Review** :

Thank you! Yeah I wanted to keep that clashing prominent to show how different 12 was from 11, and really because it was just inevitable for them not to clash due to the way 12 is. Thanks again! I haven't reached the 10th season yet but I'm so excited to write that part with Bill and Missy! I haven't watched classic who except for like 3 stories of the 1st Doctor with Susan, Barbara & Ian but I do have some knowledge of the Valeyard. Because of the Day of the Doctor where 11 has to admit to Minerva about his War Doctor incarnation, I can't exactly see him keeping the Valeyard a secret from her. I would say that after the Day of the Doctor events, the Doctor would tell her about _all_ his incarnations and versions that he had knowledge about. Honestly, I think Minerva would never believe the Doctor was to someday turn evil. Like, she would accept that the Valeyard exists but she would probably believe that the Doctor wouldn't become that incarnation with her around. I hope that made sense!

* * *

So, that's pretty much it! Thanks for reading and hope to hear your thoughts about the chapter!


	4. Listen

If Clara had to think of her worst date ever she would have to pronounce today's as the winner. As she walked into her apartment she was forced to listen to Liv's lecture.

"I can think of 50 ways that could've gone better," Liv gave a shake of her head before releasing a little laugh.

Clara made an offended gasp and shot her a look. "Don't laugh at me! You could have helped you know!"

"Well I certainly would have avoided the double gun meaning sentences." Liv shrugged and walked right into the apartment.

Clara huffed and opened her front door. She made a beeline for her bedroom, firmly believing she was going to stay in bed all day and wallow in her sorrows. But the moment she opened her bedroom door she found it was blocked by something blue. Budging a little inside she saw it was the TARDIS standing there.

"Are you kidding me?" she groaned. She could see the Doctor sitting at a chair in front of her vanity desk while Minerva, now a blonde, sat with her legs crossed in a chair, beside the Doctor, with a magazine in hand.

"You just have to squeeze through," the Doctor called. Liv went right in leaving Clara to wiggle her way through.

"What is this?" Clara frowned and flattened her dress after getting through. But then she saw Elias jumping on her bed holding a purple flowered journal in his hands. "Elias - you put that down!"

Elias giggled and let himself drop in a sitting position on her bed. "Eading!"

Liv appeared beside the bed laughing. "You picked the right book, El."

Clara grumbled and rushed to retrieve her journal. "Don't encourage him! Elias, give that back to Clara now please!"

"No!" Elias hugged the journal and got off the bed on the other side from Clara and ran straight for the TARDIS.

"Elias!" Clara was left to shout in vain. Then, out of character, she growled and fell back on her bed.

Minerva looked up from her magazine, totally at ease. "I get the feeling this is not about Elias and the journal. Anything interesting happen today, Clara?"

Clara made another noise and screwed her eyes shut. "I had a date…"

"That went…" Liv made a cutting motion across her neck.

"What did you say wrong?" Minerva tilted her head.

Clara raise her head looking mildly offended. "How do you know I said something wrong?"

Minerva shrugged and passed a page in her magazine. "You talk more than you should."

Clara's eyes widened. "Did that regeneration fry some of your kindness because you're on your way to be as rude as he is-" she nodded over to the Doctor, "-and _that_ is saying something."

"Still discovering," Minerva said without a care and went back to reading. The Doctor just smiled at her new indifference she seemed to be showing more often nowadays.

It had been only a few weeks since Minerva abruptly regenerated and so far there were a couple distinct differences in this incarnation beginning with the nonchalant manner she seemed to pick up. There was something about her new self that gave off an elegant peacefulness to anyone that came across her. The Doctor had to admit it was quite amusing to see her so changed. He wondered if this was how she felt after when he changed into his current self. Their fights over him being too blunt now had decreased by tenfold. She still cared, obviously, but just less how his words came across. He had yet to see how her fury was, though, and he was not curious to find out.

Clara let her head fall back on her bed. "It was a disaster and I am extremely upset about it, since you didn't ask."

Minerva raised her head suddenly with a new light in her eyes. "Dear, why don't we try that thing you were talking about earlier?"

"No _thing_ trying in my room," warned Clara who raised a finger to wag at them.

Minerva rolled her eyes. "Not that - although that _is_ a close second," she flashed a smirk at the Doctor.

For a moment he smirked back until her words properly registered in his mind. "Close _second_?"

"Sh!" she waved a hand at him and continued to explain. "It's quite interesting, Clara-"

"Excuse me but I am a firm believer that I am _not_ a close second-" the Doctor was still complaining on his side.

"I can't!" Clara nonetheless got the jist of where this was going.

"Oh c'mon, Clara, it's not like you're not free anyways," Minerva rose from her chair.

"I am not a close second!" the Doctor said in a louder voice, attracting her eyes.

"Are we still arguing over this?" she frowned.

" _Yes_ ," the Doctor responded with an even deeper frown. This was her carelessness coming in and now, sometimes, he could understand why she'd argued with him over the same behavior. It was heavily annoying.

"Dear, you really should let go of the past," Minerva patted his arm and turned for the TARDIS. "Elias? Mommy hopes you haven't done any mess in there..." she called as she walked in.

Clara, who now sat upright, smirked at the Time Lord in her room. "Not so funny when she does it to you, huh?"

"Quiet," the Doctor pointed a warning finger her way.

Clara's smirk widened as she pushed herself up. "You know it's possible I might get a phone call so-"

"From the date guy? It's too late," the Doctor shook his head and led her towards the TARDIS. "You've taken your make-up off."

"No, I haven't. I'm still wearing my make-up," Clara placed a hand on her cheek and followed instinctively.

"When it's humans he doesn't notice, Clara," Liv walked right behind her.

"Oh, well, you probably just missed a bit," the Doctor said to Clara like Liv hadn't even talked. "Come on, come on, come on, come on!"

"I haven't actually said yes…" Clara said after stepping inside the TARDIS.

"You signed yourself up the moment you got up from that bed, dear," Minerva called from the console.

"Elias - leave my journal alone!" Clara ran for the toddler who was busy scribbling inside an empty page.

"Nooooo!" he quickly slapped a small hand over the page and pouted at her as she came up to him. "Not done!"

Clara released a deep sigh and bent down. "Elias, that's Clara's journal. And what did I say about Clara's things?"

"Pemison?" he tilted his head much in the same manner Minerva had done minutes earlier.

"Permission - you _do_ listen," Clara tapped his nose, eliciting a small giggle from him in return. "So that's my journal and you didn't exactly ask if you could use it."

"Oops…"

"It's okay, now can I please have it back?"

"No," Elias shook his head. "Not done!"

"Give it up, Clara, you're not getting back much like he's never going to call you Clara," Liv appeared at the staircase, struggling to hold back a laugh.

"Yes, we do have more urgent things to look at," Minerva roamed the console, one hand dragging through the controls.

"Like what?" Clara straightened up, pressing her dress down.

"You know sometimes when you talk to yourself, what if you're not?" the Doctor began the same lecture he had with Minerva in the morning.

"Not what?" Clara frowned, not yet understanding.

"What if it's not you you're talking to? Proposition - what if no-one is ever really alone, what if every single living being has a companion - a silent passenger, a shadow? What if the prickle on the back of your neck, is the breath of something close behind you?"

Clara's eyes drifted to the side, mouth slightly opened as she thought about all this which really just sounded like jumbo. "Have you been inhaling things you shouldn't have?"

"It makes sense when you explain it in another way," Minerva left the console to go up to a chalkboard the Doctor had left behind earlier. On it was written the word 'Listen' in the middle.

"It looks like your handwriting," Clara turned to the Doctor.

"Well, I couldn't have written it and forgotten, could I?"

"Have you met you?"

Liv had spotted a pile of papers and books over a desk which seemed like a hot mess. "What's all this?" she walked over.

"Dreams. Accounts of dreams, by different people, all through history," the Doctor moved over as well. "You see, I have a theory."

"And you know what happens when he get's a 'theory'," Minerva crossed her arms and smirked. "He won't sit down and stay still anymore."

"I think everybody, at some point in their lives, has the exact same nightmare," the Doctor declared proudly. "You wake up, or you think you do, and there's someone in the dark, someone close, or you think there might be. So you sit up, turn on the light. And the room looks different at night. It ticks and creaks and breathes. And you tell yourself there's nobody there, nobody watching, nobody listening, nobody there at all and you very nearly believe it. You really, really try...and then…"

Minerva grasped his shoulders from behind in an attempt to scare him. "Someone grabs you from underneath the bed!" she exclaimed and laughed as the Doctor flinched.

"Have you been watching Halloween movies?" Liv asked them both.

"No, I wanted to scare him," Minerva shrugged and received a mock-glare from her husband.

"I was talking about something important here..."

"It's only important because you've had the dream,."

"What - you had the dream?" Clara pointed at the Doctor, now a little bit more interested. She chuckled. "Everyone dreams about something under the bed!"

"Why?" the Doctor challenged. He took Clara by the hand and led her to the console. He pressed her fingers to a panel of squishy material. "Just hold on tight. If anything bites, let it."

"Uh...what is it?" Clara looked down at the unfamiliar part of the console.

"TARDIS telepathic interface. You're in mental contact with the TARDIS. So don't think anything rude."

"Too late," sing-sang Liv.

Clara frowned at Liv but quickly registered the Doctor's words and asked, "Why not?"

"It might end up on all of the screens and I'd rather not have Elias see anything he shouldn't," Minerva pointed at the toddler who busied himself with scribbling again.

"Focus," the Doctor warned again. "The TARDIS is extrapolating your entire timeline, from the moment of your birth, to the moment of your death."

"Which I do not need a preview of," Clara crinkled her nose.

Minerva returned to the console and began moving some of the controls. "I'm turning off the safeguards and navigation - slaving the TARDIS to you."

The Doctor slid the monitor screen for Clara to see. "Focus on the dream, focus on the details, picture them, feel them. The TARDIS will track on your subconscious and extract the relevant information. It should be able to home in on the moment in your timeline when you first had that dream. And then...we'll see."

"What will we see?" Clara raised an eyebrow.

"What's under your bed," Minerva adopted a Halloween ghost voice as she pulled down the lever. She laughed as the TARDIS jolted into action.

"OK, now don't get distracted," the Doctor reminded Clara. "Remember, you are flying a time machine." But at the same time Clara's cellphone went off and her mind immediately flicked to Danny. "No, no. Don't you get…" the Doctor rushed over and took the phone from her, tossing it to the side. "No, Don't! Don't, don't. Just ignore it."

"We've landed," Minerva announced. "And the coordinates seem to be on track."

Clara shook her head, mildly alarmed however. "Sorry - I think I got distracted."

"No, no, no, no, no - the date's fine," the Doctor swiped Elias from the floor and headed for the doors. "Come on!"

Minerva walked past her. "I expect a loud little girl somewhere around here."

Clara struggled to take her hands from the TARDIS telepathic field and eventually joined them outside the box. They stepped out into a dark night where a rather large building stood.

"The West Country Children's Home. Gloucester - by the ozone level and the drains, mid-'90s," the Doctor concluded after a moment. "You must have been here when you had the dream."

But Clara crinkled her nose in rejection. "Never been to Gloucester in my life and I've never lived in a children's home."

"You probably just forgotten - have you seen the size of human brains, they're hilarious."

"I can vouch for her - she's never been here," Liv frowned at the place.

But of course the Doctor was already midway towards the building. "Little you must be in here somewhere, with your little brain."

"Isn't it bad if I meet myself?" Clara made it two steps after them before Minerva blocked the way. Being far taller now, Clara stumbled quite back.

"It is potentially catastrophic," Minerva agreed with a slight nod of her head. "Which is why you should remain back in the TARDIS."

"What-"

"Clara, please don't make me say it again, it's tedious having to repeat myself now." Clara sighed and with a hand she gestured she would listen. "See you in a minute," Minerva called and then hurried to catch up with the Doctor.

"But wait-" Clara called to them again, "If I had have been distracted, what would have happened?"

"We would probably have ended up in the wrong place." The Doctor turned back. "But don't think we have, cos the time zone's right. We won't be long."

Clara remained by the TARDIS as she watched the aliens head inside the orphanage. Liv took a walk around and spotted a young black boy on the second floor window staring down at them.

"Clara, look," Liv nodded up to the boy.

Just as Clara stepped forwards the boy opened up his window. "What are you doing down there?"

"Nothing," Clara coughed awkwardly. "Er... I'm just... What's your name?"

"Rupert."

"Oh. OK. Hello, Rupert."

"Rupert Pink. It's a stupid name."

"No, it isn't," Clara shook her head. "I know somebody called Pink."

"I meant Rupert. I'm going to change it," Rupert declared determinantly.

"Why are you awake? Are you scared?" Clara began to wonder back to the Doctor's words. The boy gave a nervous nod, confirming Clara's suspicion.

~0~

"It's _dirty_ ," Minerva remarked as they walked down a gloomy hallway illuminated by the Doctor's sonic screwdriver. She sighed after a moment. "Maybe I should have waited with Clara-" the Doctor sideways glanced at her, "-it just reminds me of the Silence…"

"Never again," the Doctor promised her, leaning towards her to kiss her cheek.

Seeing his Mommy down, Elias ventured to do the same and pushed himself in the Doctor's arm. Minerva took on the toddler and instantly received a kiss on her other cheek. "All better!" he exclaimed happily.

Minerva smiled at him and planted a big kiss on his forehead. The Doctor stopped and made a mock "ahem" to get her attention. She raised an eyebrow, pursing her lips together. He tapped his lips.

"It's only fair," he said logically.

Minerva's lips spread into a smile. She leaned and pressed a small kiss to his lips. "Can't exactly do more than that at the moment, can I?" she raised an eyebrow.

"Unfortunately," the Doctor mumbled but did not go before getting another kiss from her.

"Yuck," Elias covered his eyes while his parents continued down the hallway.

They came across an inner office where only the lot television cast off some light. As they came in an older man walked out and was surprised to see them there.

"How did you get in?"

"Through the door where else?" responded Minerva with a tad of annoyance. She was beginning to understand why the Doctor became annoyed with some humans - they ask stupid questions!

The Doctor pulled out his old psychic paper for the man to see. "An inspection?" the human blinked rapidly. "It's two in the morning!"

"When better?" The Doctor smirked and put away the paper. "Do you always work here nights?"

"Most nights, yes."

"Ever end up talking to yourself?"

"All the time - it's this place…" the man gestured to the room, "...you can't help it."

Minerva was looking around the room without trying to hide her dislike for it. She could not help the memories that would surface the more time she spent there. Eyes laying on a mug of coffee on the table seemed to be the distraction she needed. "What about your coffee?"

The man sent her an odd look for the question. "My coffee?"

"Yes," Minerva languidly raised her gaze up to the confused man. "The coffee. Do you put it down and look around only to see that it's not there anymore?"

The man looked at the two aliens with a kind of look that asked what any of this had to do with an inspection. "Everybody does that."

"Yes. Everybody," the Doctor agreed. The television from the other room suddenly turned off, leaving an eerie silence. "Who turned your telly off?" he asked as the man peered into the other room.

Elias tugged on Minerva's sleeve. "Mommy, is it the ghost?" he whispered. "Casper?"

"No, not that sort..." Minerva had trailed off when she returned her gaze to the mug of coffee...and saw that it had disappeared.

~0~

Clara found Rupert's bedroom without getting caught by anyone. Liv had made herself invisible in case anything went wrong and the boy thought he saw a 'Ghost'. That would probably scar him for years to come.

"A boy sitting on the floor in the dark," observed Liv as they walked into the room and saw Rupert simply sitting in the middle of the room doing nothing but staring. "That's not welcoming…"

Clara ignored her and walked further inside. "Hello."

"Hello," Rupert greeted but didn't move from his spot.

"Nice room," Clara grabbed a chair to sit on. "You know, you should have more than one chair. What do you do when people come 'round?"

"Sit on the bed."

"Why aren't _you_ sitting on it, then?" Clara noticed the quick flicker of Rupert's eyes towards the bed. "Do you think that there's something underneath it?"

"Kids, always thinking there's something under the bed," Liv chuckled. "There was only one child I had that wasn't preoccupied with that." Clara gave her an expectant look. "Amelia Pond - she was more worried about the crack on her wall that had prisoner's voices coming out of it. You know, that sort of thing."

The expression on Clara's face was phenomenal. If there was anything she wished for in the world of the TARDIS and time travelers it was to meet the famous Ponds.

"What are you looking at?" Rupert asked, snapping her out from her thoughts. In his view, Clara was staring at nothing since Liv wasn't technically there for him.

Clara blinked and turned her attention back to him. "Listen, um, everyone thinks that there's something under the bed. That's just how people think at night."

"Why?"

Clara stared at the boy for a minute, pondering on what she already knew. "Did you have a dream, a hand grabbing your foot?" Rupert remained silent. "You have, haven't you? You've had that exact dream."

"How did you know?"

"Well what do you know?" Liv sounded in awe. "The Doctor was right. Perhaps there _is_ something more to this. Clara, I think I'm gonna go find them."

Clara waited until Liv disappeared before continuing with Rupert. The poor kid seemed so scared she wanted to show him there was nothing to be afraid of. "Do you know why dreams are called dreams?"

"Why?" asked Rupert.

"Because they're not real. If they were, they wouldn't need a name," Clara concluded and got up.

"What are you doing?" Rupert slowly pushed himself up when Clara headed for his bed.

Clara bent down to look underneath the bed. "Do you know what's under there?"

"What?"

Clara smiled suddenly. "Me!" She said and crawled underneath the bed. "Come on! It's perfectly safe."

Rupert slowly walked up to the bed and crawled underneath just as she wished. Both of them laid flat on their back.

"See?" Clara whispered. "Nobody here. Except us."

Rupert still wasn't completely convinced. "Sometimes I hear noises."

"It's a house full of people, of course you hear noises," Clara would've shrugged if the space allowed for it.

"They're all asleep."

"They're all dreaming," Clara countered.

"Can you hear dreams?"

"If you're clever enough, but they can't harm you. You know, sometimes we think there's something behind us - and the space under your bed is what's behind you at night. Simple as that. There's nothing to be afraid of."

Of course, then they heard a creaking noise above them like if someone had just taken a seat on the bed.

"Who else is in this room?" whispered Clara, her eyes drifting upwards.

Rupert could barely hold his breath. "Nobody."

Clara was trying to look for a more logical explanation, although a good part of her wished Liv was still in the room to tell them who had come in. "Someone must have come in."

"Nobody came in," Rupert assured it was just them.

Clara sighed and ventured to find out herself. She saw someone sitting on the bed underneath the white sheet. "Hello?" she spoke to what she believed was just one of the other kids. Meanwhile, she helped Rupert out from under the bed. "Who's this? This is a friend of yours playing a game." Rupert shook his head but Clara still didn't believe him. "Playing a trick, are you, hey, a little trick on Rupert here?" but the figure silently rose from the bed. "OK. It's not funny this, you know."

"It's really not," agreed Minerva who turned on the bedroom lights. Clara was surprised to find the blonde inside as well as the Doctor and Elias, both of whom had taken a comfortable seat on a chair with a large children's book.

"Where is he, El?" The Doctor asked the toddler who quickly slapped a hand over the page.

"Dere!"

"Really?" the Doctor leaned forwards to see the page better. "I can't find him."

"Dere!" Elias repeated with a soft grown of annoyance.

"Who are you trying to find?" frowned Clara.

"Wally. He's nowhere in this book."

Liv popped in, but Rupert couldn't see her again. "I go to get the Oncoming storm and he's playing 'Where's Waldo'."

It was Rupert's turn to frown. "It's not a Where's Wally one."

"How would you know? Maybe you just haven't found him yet," countered the Doctor.

"He's not in every book."

"Really?" the Doctor seemed quite offended. "Well, that's a few years of my life I'll be needing back."

"Don't you wish you could take back the senseless nights sleeping on the couch too?" Minerva smirked at him, making the Doctor remember such nights he was forced out of their bedroom because he insisted on finding every last figure in the books.

"Can someone please focus on whatever the hell this is?" Liv didn't think she would have to remind them that there was a creature right on a child's bed, hiding like an actual child!

Deciding it was better than reliving such arguments, the Doctor agreed with Liv. "Are you scared?" he questioned Rupert as he handed Elias to Minerva, the boy refusing to let go of the book. "The thing on the bed, whatever it is... look at it. Does it scare you?"

Rupert spared the creature a glance. "Yes."

"That's good. Want to know why that's good?"

"Why?"

"Let me tell you about scared," the Doctor went up to the little boy amd took one of his hands. "Your heart is beating so hard, I can feel it through your hands. There's so much blood and oxygen pumping through your brain, it's like rocket fuel. Right now, you could run faster and you could fight harder you could jump higher than ever in your life, and you are so alert it's like you can slow down time. What's wrong with scared? Scared is a superpower. It's _your_ superpower. There is danger in this room and guess what? It's _you_. Do you feel it? Do you think he feels it? Do you think he's scared? Nah! Loser! Turn your back on him."

"What?" Rupert blinked.

"Yeah, turn your back on him, come on. You too, Clara," the Doctor passively said while reaching for Minerva's hand. All of them headed for the window. "Clara, your back, now. Do it, just do it now, turn your back. Do it now, turn your back. Lovely view out this window."

"It's _dark_ ," Minerva said like it should have been obvious this was all they would be seeing.

" _Lovely_ dark," the Doctor corrected for Rupert's sake. "We'd never see the stars without it. Now. There are two possibilities. Possibility one - it's just one of your friends standing there, and he's playing a joke on you. Possibility two - it isn't."

"So, plan?" Liv coughed for their attention. "Plans are good."

"Oh, I got one," Minerva beamed but stayed looking at the window. "You on the bed - yeah I'm talking to you - you better go in peace. I mean, if you want to stay hidden fine - we can respect that. Just leave."

Clara was about to tell Minerva that was the silliest plan ever...but then she heard the springs of the bed creak. "Is it gone?"

"I could look," Liv volunteered. "Not like it can see me."

"We made a promise," the Doctor reminded. "Don't look round, not yet."

"I can't hear anything," Rupert spoke up.

"Don't look 'round."

But Rupert began doing the opposite and turned his head.

"Young man what did we just say?" Minerva caught him midway. "Follow Elias' lead, please," she gestured to the toddler who'd covered his eyes with his hands.

"But what is it?" Rupert asked, slightly irritated no one would answer his questions.

"Imagine a thing that must never be seen. What would it do if you saw it?" asked the Doctor in return

"I don't know."

"And neither do we so close your eyes," Minerva promptly responded. " _All_ of you do it now. We need to give it what it wants. Prove to it that you're not going to look at it. Make a promise - promise you're never going to look at it."

Rupert shut his eyes hard. "I promise never to look."

"The breath on the back of your neck... like your hairs standing on end... that means don't look 'round!" the Doctor said just before there was a loud slam of the bedroom door.

Clara, Rupert and Minerva turned quickly to find they were alone again while the Doctor followed slowly.

"Bye!" Elias waved at the door.

"He took my bedspread," Rupert frowned at his empty bed.

"Oh, the human race-" the Doctor rolled his eyes, "-you're never happy, are you?"

"Am I safe now?" the boy asked in return.

The Doctor busied himself with a toy robot nearby but nonetheless answered...in his own way. "Nobody's safe, especially not at night in the dark, anything can get you, and you're up here all alone…"

Minerva loudly cleared her throat to cut him off. He turned to her only to find little Elias staring at him with a quivering lip. "What were you saying now, dear?" Minerva challenged.

"You're awful," Clara declared at the Time Lord. "Let me take a whack at it, alright?" She picked up a box of toy soldiers from a shelf and walked to the bed where Rupert had taken a seat at. "These yours?" she began taking some of the soldiers out.

"They're the home's," Rupert replied.

"They're yours now."

"People don't need to be lied to," the Doctor sighed.

"Oh but I bet you'd tell your little boy anything to make him feel better," snapped Clara.

"Got you there, dear," Minerva smirked while the Doctor huffed. "It's a double standard."

"See what I'm doing?" Clara had lined the toy army men around the bed for Rupert. "This is your army. And they're going to guard under your bed." She grabbed the nearest one. "See this one? This is the boss one, the colonel - He's going to keep a special eye out."

"It's broken, that one. It doesn't have a gun," Rupert pointed to the plastic soldier.

"That's why he's the boss," Clara smiled. "A soldier so brave he doesn't need a gun. He can keep the whole world safe. What shall we call him?"

Rupert thought fast. "Dan! Dan, the soldier man. That's what I call him."

"Good. Good name."

"Yeah. Would you read me a story? It'll help me get to sleep."

At this the Doctor walked over without a word. "Once upon a time…" he put an index finger to Rupert's forehead and immediately made the boy fall asleep, "...the end. Dad skills."

"I don't know who you've been fathering because you haven't done that to _my_ son," Minerva put a protective hand over Elias' head. "And you won't," she turned around and walked out of the room first.

They returned to the TARDIS and de-materialized at once before anything else happened. After Minerva set Elias down on the chair, she turned around to the others, specifcally Clara.

"We gotta talk," she announced, getting the human a bit on edge.

"What? Why? What I'd do!?"

"We didn't see another version of you," Minerva pointed out, the Doctor humming in agreement. He'd been thinking about it too and couldn't understand why they ended up with young Rupert instead.

"I got distracted," Clara shamefully admitted.

"But why that particular boy?" the Doctor inquired finally. "You don't have any...you don't have any kind of connection with him, do you?"

"No. No, no, no, of course not!" Clara shot down any assumptions he may have been getting at. "Why do you ask?"

"Clara, the TARDIS was slaved to your timeline. Theoretically, there should have been some connection," Minerva continued to eye the brunette in case she wanted to confess something.

"Will the kid remember that, though?" Liv curiously asked. "I mean, cos...that could seriously mess him up for the rest of his life."

"Scrambled his memory, gave him a big old dream about being Dan the soldier man," the Doctor shrugged carelessly.

"Good," Clara nodded, but her distraction had proved to be more than just a _simple_ distraction.

Minerva was on that fast. "Whatever happened on that date can be fixed, Clara." Hearing her name, Clara's eyes snapped to the blonde in surprise. "I mean, if you really like this man then why end things there? Nothing has to end bad here."

Clara sighed and thought for a moment, deciding this was something she truly wanted to work out. "I am sorry to ask, and I realize this is probably against the laws of time, or something...um...could you do me a favor?"

"What is it?" the Doctor asked her in suspicion.

Minerva, on the other hand, smirked and headed for the console. "Oh haven't you seen it yet, Doctor? She wants to go back to that date."

Clara sheepishly smiled at the Time Lord.

~ 0 ~

The TARDIS materialized just across the restauraunt from where Clara had her dinner date. As Clara and the two aliens stepped out, they were able to see the version of Clara from earlier hurriedly walking down the street.

"Is that what I look like from the back?" Clara tilted her head.

"Next time you might want to go with a nice pants-suit," Minerva said, surprising Clara by the bluntness, and walked back inside the box.

"Okay, she's just as rude as you are now," Clara huffed at the Doctor and started for the restaurant again.

The Doctor smirked and returned to the TARDIS.

"Elias, give that back to Mommy," Minerva was trying to get Clara's journal back from the toddler. Liv chuckled beside the chair Elias sat on. He was scribbling like mad on another empty page of the journal.

"No!" went Elias, shaking his fiercely.

"Elias, this is Clara's and she is going to be very upset when she finds her entire journal has been invaded by a toddler."

"Let it be, Minerva," the Doctor headed for the console and de-materialized them quick. "We still have to finish this."

"What?" both women turned to him in surprise. The Doctor continued to work on the console like nothing.

"You want to find another one of those creatures again?" Liv was making a wide-eyed face towards him. "Are you kidding me?"

Minerva made a gesture for Liv to back down for a minute then pointed for her to keep an eye on Elias. "Dear," she approached the Doctor quietly, "why is it so important to you?" the Doctor stopped and just looked at her. "I understand that you had this dream but...so what? It was just a dream - a dream that stays a dream eventually."

"I _have_ to find out," the Doctor spoke just as quietly as she had.

"But why?" Minerva insisted. "What would be the point? We are just going to come across obscure creatures that do us no harm except give us a fright when we're five. Now you've had an interesting trip but...let's just move on."

"I can't just let it go," the Doctor frowned. "It's important, Clever Girl. I _need_ to find out what it is. Please? Help me?"

Minerva upheld his pleading look for as long as she could, but from the first moment she knew it was a lost cause. "Damn you, Martian," she whispered and gave him a small peck on the lips.

~ 0 ~

Clara was going to kick herself because once again she failed date redo. But she also thought the Doctor and Minerva were playing a good hand at these continuous failures. Here she was trying to fix things with Danny when she saw an orange astronaut peeking out from the restaurant kitchen. Of course, her curiosity got the best of her and she left Danny midway again.

"I am trying to have a date - a real life, inter-human actual date!" she began to shout at the astronaut whom she believed was the Doctor. "It's a normal nice, everyday, meeting-up sort of thing, and I would just like to know, is there any other way you can make this any more surreal than it already is?"

Finally, the man removed the helmet to reveal to be, of course, _not_ the Doctor. In fact, he looked a whole lot like Danny Pink except older and with more hair.

"Now you don't have to blame us for your failures," Minerva appeared by the TARDIS threshold, arms crossed. "And be nice to our guest."

Clara growled and followed the mysterious man into the TARDIS. "Who is this man?" she pointed a thumb at the man.

"What's gone wrong with your face?" the Doctor asked as soon as he met Clara's look. "It's all eyes! Why are you all eyes? Get them under control."

"I think her date's gone wrong again," Minerva said distractedly. "And by the way Clara, that's Colonel Orson Pink, from about 100 years in your future."

Clara laughed nervously as she glanced at Orson. "Orson Pink"

"Yeah, I laughed too," remarked Minerva who then met eyes with Orson. She clapped a hand to her mouth. "Sorry," came out the muffled word.

"Do you have any connection with him?" the Doctor walked over to Clara.

"Connection?"

"Yes, maybe you're like a distant relative or something?"

"H-How would I know?"

"No need to get nervous," Liv appeared beside Clara, giving her a side eyed look.

"You wouldn't happen to have any old family pictures of her would you?" Minerva was asking Orson. "Probably quite old…maybe a bit...wrinklier?"

"Wow she's really making an effort there," Liv snorted. Even she had realized Minerva's personality had drastically changed with the regeneration.

"How did you find him?" Clara asked the Doctor quietly.

"You left a trace in the TARDIS telepathic circuits. I fired them up again and the TARDIS brought me straight to him. So he's something to do with your timeline. And you'll never guess where I found him."

"Let's show her," Minerva picked Elias from the chair just as the TARDIS landed in the mysterious place.

Clara followed them out into a cold spaceship full of intricate machinery. She went up the first window she saw to find herself on an empty planet that looked more like a desert. "Where are we?" she asked them.

"The end of the road - this is it, the end of everything... the last planet," the Doctor gestured with arms opened.

"The end of the universe?" Clara didn't seem to buy the answer.

"Been there, done that," Minerva shook her head full of memories.

"The TARDIS isn't supposed to come this far-" the Doctor began, "-but we turned the safeguards off. Listen!"

"To what?" Clara looked around. "Silence?"

"Also been there, done that," Minerva pointed.

"This is the silence at the end of time," the Doctor explained, making Clara look look over to see Orson emptying a cabinet into a duffle bag.

"Then how did he get here?" she asked. "If he's from 100 years in my future…"

"Pioneer time traveller. Rode the first of the great time shots. They were supposed to fire him into the middle of the next week."

"What happened?"

"Isn't it clear? He went a bit far," Minerva smiled.

"A bit?"

"A big bit."

"Look at him now," gestured the Doctor. "Robinson Crusoe at the end of time itself - the last man standing in the universe. I always thought that would be me."

"Ahem?" Minerva sarcastically cleared her throat.

"With my beautiful wife of course."

"Last woman standing in the universe…" she tested it out, "...oh, it has a ring to it."

"It's not a competition," Liv flatout scolded them both.

Clara smiled in amusement and once again glanced to Orson. "He looks like he's packing."

"He's been stranded for six months, just met a time traveller - of course he's packing," the Doctor shrugged.

"You can do it, then? You can get me home?" Orson hastily came back to them.

"We just showed you, didn't we?" Minerva raised an eyebrow. "A test flight to a restaurant."

"Yes, but to my family, to my own time?"

"I would assume so," Minerva nodded.

"TARDIS goes anywhere," Elias said slowly for the man to understand.

"Is everything OK?" Orson happened to notice Clara giving him strange looks every two seconds or so.

"Yeah, fine. I'm fine," the brunette answered quick.

"You are such a liar," Liv went on beside her. "So he looks like Danny, big deal. It just means he's related or will be to you anyways."

"Do I know you?" Orson continued to ask Clara, of course still not seeing Liv there beside her.

"No, nope," Clara felt stressed suddenly.

"Is she doing the "all eyes" thing?" the Doctor mimicked Clara's supposed face. "It's because her face is so wide. She needs three mirrors!"

"Doctor!" Clara groaned.

"We can't leave immediately, though," Minerva cut in. "The TARDIS needs to recharge."

"Sorry…" Clara turned to the blonde, "what?" of course that was a _lie_. What she would like to know is why the need to give the lie.

"Overnight, that should do it," continued Minerva before giving Clara a sharp look, "Shouldn't it, Clara?"

"Overnight?" Orson repeated, looking far more scared than anything.

"One more night, that's... that's not a problem, is it?" the Doctor crossed his arms at the man, a challenging look etched across his face.

It was easy to see that Orson was hesitant to answer. "No. No, no problem."

"Wow," Minerva said in utter awe. "There's four people in this room and you're flatout lying..."

"No lies, lying bad," Elias chimed in his own 'scold'.

"He's so scared," Liv observed Orson, further confusing Clara. "And I'd like to know why."

"You must have seen it, too, Clara - you've got eyes out to here!" the Doctor gestured, getting a frown from her in return.

"Seen what?" Clara's eyes did a quick observation of the room but everything seemed quiet, and high tech. What could possibly be wrong except for the fact they were at the end of the universe?

"Clara, the universe is dead," Minerva pointed to the window for visual example. "Everything that ever was is dead and gone. There is nothing beyond this door but nothingness forever. So...why is the door locked?"

"Good question," Liv was eyeing said door.

Clara followed the gaze and saw for herself it was locked. "Wh-why is that door locked?"

"Please... don't make me spend another night here," Orson pleaded with terrified eyes.

"Afraid of the dark? But the dark...is empty now," the Doctor said the logical view, but even he knew that couldn't be true.

"No, it isn't," Orson glanced at the nearest window.

But nonetheless the group of time travelers decided to stay. Orson however, was given the opportunity to remain inside the TARDIS seeing his dilemma.

When Minerva emerged from the TARDIS, the Doctor had not seemed to move from his spot. "Well, Elias is fast asleep now. Although we will have to get Clara a new journal."

"What are we doing now?" Liv popped in beside the Doctor. "You look bored," she remarked at him.

"He _is_ bored," Minerva smirked and walked up to them. "He's doing what he hates most: _waiting_."

"But for what?" Liv grew tired of asking but it felt like she wasn't even in control of her words. They just kept tumbling through her mouth. "For who? If everybody in the universe is dead, then there's nobody out there."

"That's one way of looking at it," the Doctor raised his gaze from a computer screen to see the window up ahead of them.

"Well, what's the other?"

"That's a hell of a lot of ghosts."

"Also been there, done that," Minerva sighed.

"Done what?" Clara stepped out of the TATDIS. But the moment she did, the interior lights of the room changed into a deep blue shade. "What just happened?"

"Now what is _that_?" Liv had spotted a peculiar phrase written over the airlock.

"DON'T OPEN THE DOOR" was written at the top. "Where did that come from?"

"It's always been there," the Doctor briefly explained. "It's only visible in the night light."

"But who wrote it?" Clara tilted her head.

"Who do you think?" Minerva Once again smirked. "Colonel Pink. Apparently, at night, he needs a reminder. Six months stranded alone, I suppose it must be tempting."

"What is?" Clara gave her a weird look.

"Company."

And at that moment there was a loud metal creaking from the walls. Clara nearly jumped in her spot. "What's that?"

"What kind of explanation would you like?" The Doctor wondered.

"A reassuring one."

"Well, the systems are switching to low power. There are temperature differentials all over this ship. It's like pipes banging when the heating goes off."

"Always thought there was something in the pipes…"

Minerva rolled her eyes and plopped down a chair. "Who were you having dinner with?"

Clara now had an incredulous look. "Are you making conversation? _Now_?"

"I'm curious," Minerva innocently gestured.

Clara supposed the distraction was better than continuing to think about the monster on the other side of the door. "I told you. A _date_."

"Serious?" The Doctor raised one eyebrow.

"It's a date."

"A serious date?"

"Do I have to bring him to you for approval?" Clara laughed.

"Well, we would like to know about his intentions," Minerva shrugged.

"If you like, we can pop ahead and check them out," the Doctor suggested, curious as well of who Clara was meeting with.

"Frankly, you've already done enough," huffed the brunette.

"I resent that," Minerva frowned. "Nobody forced you to come. If your date isn't working out then perhaps it's because of you and himand your curiosity _not us_."

"Got you there," Liv patted Clara on the arm.

Before Clara could refute that, there was a loud creaking again. The Doctor looked around just as Minerva rose from her chair. "Atmospheric pressure equalising…"

"Or?" Clara waited.

"Ghosts are here," Minerva shared a tinge of a smile.

Clara was not having the ghosts. She turned to both of them, hands on hips. "Why are we doing this? Why don't we just go?"

"Because I need to know," the Doctor persisted.

"Why? About what?"

"Suppose that there are creatures that live to hide - that only show themselves to the very young or the very old or the mad or anyone who wouldn't be believed…"

Clara nodded like she was following. "Okay…"

"What would those creatures do when everyone was gone, when there was only one man left standing in the universe?"

The answer came in the form of a metallic knock at the airlock.

Clara jumped and looked back at the door. "What's that?"

There is a metallic knocking and they both look to the airlock.

"Potentially, the hull cooling," Minerva eyed the door, beginning to feel a little afraid herself.

"Potentially?"

"Believably."

"Someone knocking," the Doctor stepped forwards while another three knocks passed. "Yes…" and as there went more knocks, he walked towards the airlock.

"Doctor, get back…" Minerva ordered in a shaky voice.

Liv popped right beside the door as soon as the Doctor approached them. "Take it from someone who's been dead and in the rooms of children - there is no such thing as a monster under the bed."

"You're dead, so you don't look anymore," countered the man. Liv groaned and looked away, but that didn't stop him from continuing. "What's that in the mirror? Or the corner of your eye? What's that footstep following, but never passing by?"

"Did we seriously come to the end of the universe because of a nursery rhyme?" Clara gaped and looked at Minerva for some help. It seemed like the blonde was finally getting over the mystery herself as the knocking grew more and more. It didn't help when the airlock handle began to turn. "That's you turning, right?"

"That is _not_ him turning it," Liv answered, now wide-eyed at the door.

"Doctor, we need to go, _now_ ," Minerva commanded and even pointed Clara to get a head start.

"No," went the Doctor, much to her surprise.

"No, it doesn't matter anymore! Whatever is out there is coming to get us! Let's go!"

"No, I have to know!"

"Doctor!"

"The TARDIS, now!"

Minerva exasperatedly groaned. Clara then tried her hand at persuading. "Somebody is out there - now we know we can leave!"

But the Time Lord didn't move. "It's a pressure lock - releasing it could've triggered the opening mechanism."

"Is there even an atmosphere out there?" Liv looked around.

"Of course not," Minerva determinedly strode across the room to retrieve her husband. "We gotta go right now!"

"No, _you_ have to go!" the Doctor snapped.

"What-"

"You were right - this is important to _me_. So get in the TARDIS and keep them safe."

Minerva made a face of an outright 'no'. "You've finally lost it, Martian! Congratulations! Now let's go!"

"I said no-"

"I AM NOT LEAVING WITHOUT YOU!"

"I AM NOT ASKING!"

Minerva stared at him beyond furious than she had ever been. "You are finally, seriously, a _stupid_ idiot who prefers to follow a stupid nursery rhyme than keep your wife and son _safe_!"

The Doctor blinked in shock. Minerva was trembling from her anger, and her hazel-green eyes were narrowed on him. She didn't stick around to hear his rebuttal. She whirled around and stormed away into the TARDIS. Clara scurried in behind her.

"Are you going to be okay?" she asked as Minerva walked up to the monitor on the console.

"What's happening?" Orson's question filled in the silent void as Minerva refused to answer.

"He's opening the door," Clara said quietly.

~ 0 ~

"That's going to cost you," Liv said calmly right beside the Doctor.

"Go," he responded darkly.

Liv snorted. "As if. I'm dead - half dead anyways - and I'm not going anywhere. If there's truly been something under the bed this whole time I want to know what it was." She smirked. "How'd the rhyme end?"

"Perhaps they're all just waiting, perhaps when we're all dead, out they'll come a-slithering from underneath the bed."

The door opened.

~ 0 ~

The monitor was not able to show much when the door opened and rushed in with wind. All they heard was a violent thumping that knocked everyone to the floor.

"What's that?" Clara gasped when an alert went off.

"The alarm - the air shell's breached," Orson responded and hurried towards the door.

"YOU IDIOT!" Minerva couldn't help scream when she saw the Doctor holding onto one of the counters in the spaceship as the air was being sucked out.

~ 0 ~

"I told you this wasn't going to end well," Liv said louder for the Doctor to hear. While he held onto dear life, she stood there, completely unaffected by the new environment's conditions. "Although I'm pretty disappointed there's no monster under the bed-"

Just as the Doctor was about to slip off, Orson managed to get to him in his spacesuit. By the time Orson returned, the Doctor had been knocked unconscious from the force.

"Is he okay?" Clara asked as the Time Lord was set onto the chair beside the console.

Minerva was looking down at him with a mixture of relief and anger. "If he's not dead I'll kill him myself when he wakes up."

"Something hit him on the way," Liv popped in beside her, ignoring Orson's startled look from now being able to see Liv.

"You didn't see what I saw - _it_ couldn't see me.

"What was out there?" Clara walked up to her friend. They could all hear series of three repeating sounds hitting the other side but no one dared to go near the door anymore.

A smile quirked its way across Liv's lips. "I don't know." Because in all the chaos and yelling at the Doctor not to let go, the creature had swept around the room without her being able to properly look at it. "And I find that freaking amazing! It's managed to evade me!"

"Congratulations," said Minerva in a flat tone. At the same time, the doors of the TARDIS rumbled as if someone was trying to get through. Minerva stepped back, for the first time unsure how to deal with the situation. Her husband was out cold and the fact her innocent son was fast asleep didn't make her relax one bit. There was a mighty hiss on the other side that kept them all silent for a couple of seconds.

"That's probably just the rest of the air escaping..." Orson said quietly.

"Yeah, sure," Liv scoffed.

Orson threw out his lie when the wood of the box started creaking. "We _are_ safe, right? Nothing can get in here?"

"Probably," Clara looked at Minerva hopefully.

However, Minerva's attention was drawn to the Cloister Bells ringing all of a sudden. "No!"

Someone banged on the box, causing it to shake.

"Not in my home you monster," Minerva muttered and pulled the lever of the console but the box wouldn't go. "C'mon!" she rattled the lever then slapped a hand to her forehead.

"Can I do that telepathic thing again?" Clara offered an alternative, something that Minerva rapidly caught on to. "It's got my trace, right? It would take us back automatically."

"Probably not home-" Minerva walked over to Clara and brought her to the console, "-but certainly away from here and that is all we need right now."

"Good enough for me," Clara agreed and stuck her hands once more into the telepathic circuits.

"But what if she starts thinking about...you know..." Liv had whispered to Minerva and made a discreet nod to Orson.

"I'll smack her," Minerva didn't hesitate to answer.

The time rotor began to pick up speed and suddenly, gratefully, they were off and away. It landed with a violent thump but everyone remained fine. There were no more eerie noises on the other side.

"Where exactly are we?" Liv moved over to the scanner but it was not working at the moment.

"You better have paid our situation the focus it deserved," Minerva threw a warning look at Clara who gulped.

"I...should probably go check..." the brunette pointed at the doors, "...just in case."

" _No_ ," Minerva put a hand on Clara's arm, the sharpness in that simple word making Clara wince, "I will. Last thing I need is for you to be knocked out like my idiot husband."

"How are you going to protect yourself if that creature is still out there?" Orson stopped Minerva before she could make it to the rails.

"I have some powers I can use," Minerva walked around him like nothing. She stopped just in front of the doors and glanced back at the others. "I want all of you to stay in here. Look after my husband and one of you peek into Elias' room to see how he's doing."

No one dared to disobey her instructions. Minerva had assumed that Clara had once again not focused enough and they ended back in the orphanage. This time she was sure that the creature would not be as kind as to leave them alone. They needed to leave the TARDIS for some time in order for the box to reconfigure itself and for that, the environment needed to be safe.

Minerva opened the door and stepped out into a dark room. The moment her boot touched the floor she felt soft hay covering it all. There were opened creaks along the walls that allowed for a moonlight to illuminate the place. It was definitely _not_ the orphanage. She could see a raised platform at the end of the rather large room - which she now realized was more of a barn than anything else - and on a plain bed was a crying child.

"What in the hell...?" Minerva carefully tread towards the platform. Where had the TARDIS brought them to? Or rather, where had Clara brought them? It was, after all, her trace that the TARDIS picked up on. "Clara?" she whispered, assuming the child had to be the younger version of Clara. "Clara?" she began to climb the ladder of the platform.

Suddenly, the door of the barn opened and in came a man and woman who were in the middle of a conversation. Minerva took opportunity of their distraction to crawl under the bed as a hiding spot. This wasn't exactly sounding much like Clara's parents...nor was the sobs of the child now that she thought about it.

"Why does he have to sleep out here?" the man was asking.

"He doesn't want the others to hear him crying," the woman replied.

"Why does he have to cry _all_ the time?" the man sounded weary of the situation.

"You know why," shushed the woman.

"There'll be no crying in the army!"

"Hush!"

The two had climbed up the loft to where the child was.

"Don't pretend you're not awake. We're not idiots," the man warned said child.

The woman spoke in a much kinder tender voice. "Come and sleep in the house. You don't have to be alone! If you can hear me, you're very welcome in the house, with the other boys. I'll leave the door on the latch. Come in, any time."

After that, the couple headed away to leave again.

"He can't just run away crying all the time if he wants to join the army," the man continued with the woman, sounding pretty irritated.

"He doesn't want to join the army. I keep telling you," the woman tried shushing him again.

"Well, he's not going to the Academy, is he, that boy? He'll never make a Time Lord."

Minerva let her head drop. Of course the TARDIS would decide _now_ to tap into Clara's multiple echo timelines! It had brought them back to the very beginnings of the Doctor himself. She managed to hear a bit of _her_ Doctor's call and, apparently, so had his younger self above.

"Hello, who's there?"

Minerva suddenly wished she could vanish before the boy saw her.

"Hello?" the boy sat up and swung his legs to one side of the bed, particularly in front of Minerva. She knew if he got up he would be able to spot the TARDIS - with those keen eyes of his it was only a matter of time. Before she realized what she did, her hand sprung forwards and grasped the boy by the ankle.

 _Did I just do that?_ she then thought. The boy had frozen completely and Minerva realized this was completely _her_ fault. Well, she wasn't going to let it go by without her proper attempt to make it better.

"It's OK. This is just a dream," she whispered. "Just lie back again, just lie back on the bed. It will all be okay if you just lie down and go to sleep. Just do that for me. Just sleep." As soon as she released his ankle, the boy practically jumped back under the covers.

 _Good going, Minerva, just scarred your husband for life_. Minerva released a small breath and endeavored one last time. She got out from her hiding spot and looked down at the boy who had continued to cry again. She covered her face as she thought of another way. _I am not going anywhere_ , she thought and closed all telepathic connection with her Doctor before he caught sight of what she had in front of her.

"Listen," she gently sat beside the boy and reached to stroke the familiar dark hair. "This is just a dream. But very clever people can hear dreams, and I know you are _very_ clever. So, please, just listen. I know you're afraid but being afraid is alright. Because didn't anybody ever tell you fear is a superpower?" she paused to smile. "Fear can make you faster and cleverer and stronger. And one day, you're going to come back to this barn, and on that day you are going to be very afraid indeed. But that's okay. Because if you're very wise and very strong - and I know you are - fear doesn't have to make you cruel or cowardly. Fear can make you _kind_. You are going to be very a kind boy, a kind man. It doesn't matter if there's nothing under the bed or in the dark, so long as you know it's okay to be afraid of it. So, listen. If you listen to nothing else, listen to this. You're always going to be afraid... even if you learn to hide it. Fear is like... a companion... a constant companion, always there. But that's okay, because fear can bring us together. Fear can bring you home. And my sweet boy, you won't be alone." She leaned down to whisper, "You'll meet her soon, I promise." With her palm she created a miniature snowflake. She left it beside him for when he would look up from the blanket. "Remember this."

~ 0 ~

"One of you better tell me where my wife is," the Doctor had finished threatening Clara, Liv, and Orson up to where they didn't even know.

"Well there's no need to shout," Minerva closed the door behind her. "Has anyone checked on Elias like I asked?"

"You didn't ask, you ordered," Liv pointed out but Minerva ignored her.

The Doctor hurried up to Minerva thinking she'd gone off to face the danger on her own. "Where have you been? What's out there-"

Minerva grasped his armw before he even made a step towards the doors. "Let's go, please," she whispered.

"But where are we? Where did we land-"

"It doesn't matter now, let's just go. And don't look back, promise."

"But Minerva-"

" _Please_ ," Minerva moved her hands to his face. "I want to go."

The Doctor stared down at her for a long minute, and remembering her words from earlier he decided to just leave it all. It wasn't worth her anger nor their safety. He took Minerva's hands off his face, gave each a kiss, and led them back to the console. After dropping Orson back in his proper timeline, Clara asked to be taken to a new place instead of the restaurant.

"So...I'll see you then," Clara awkwardly backtracked to the doors. She wasn't sure where Minerva and the Doctor stood with each other, but she hoped it was somewhere better than earlier.

"Good luck with the date," Minerva gave a small thumbs up. "Oh-" she pointed and went to the second level, "-I've got something-" she dragged a hand across one of the book shelves and plucked out a small blue-flowered journal, "-for you. A new journal!" she turned around and hurried back downstairs.

"A...journal?" Clara made a face.

"Elias wrote in yours up until the last page," Minerva shrugged. "Figured you could use another one. Don't worry, we'll get your other pages moved later."

"Okay, thanks," Clara took the journal with a nod and headed for the doors.

"And try not to talk so much this time!" Minerva called, not even noticing Clara's brief glare of offence.

Liv laughed. "C'mon!" she said to Clara before disappearing.

Minerva sighed and turned around just as the door closed behind her. She met eyes with the Doctor, and suddenly awkwardness filled the air. "I'm...going to check on Elias."

The Doctor couldn't have gotten a word in before she hurried out of the console room. He thought about following her to talk, but he wasn't quite sure if she wanted that yet. This regeneration sure proved to be a much different Minerva than her previous ones. Even he was truly stumped sometimes with her.

~ 0 ~

Hours had passed inside the TARDIS, and while Minerva watched over Elias, her mind was completely somewhere else. Finally, she decided she wouldn't leave things like this, no one deserved that. She walked up to Elias' crib and leaned down to kiss Elias' hair.

"Sleep well my mini-Martian," she whispered and covered him a bit more in his blanket.

She walked out of the room and made a beeline for the kitchen.

~ 0 ~

Needless to say, when the Doctor got a strange couple of hums from the TARDIS he was a bit concerned. She usually did that whenever something was wrong. In fact, he strictly remembered her doing that when Minerva was suffering from her Moontsay crystal. But now there was Elias as well - what if something was wrong with his son!?

"Elias!?" he rushed into the corridors. "Minerva!?" he wasn't sure which name he should be calling out, perhaps both?

The TARDIS rearranged rooms for him in order to find the person that "needed his help". He stumbled into the kitchen and found Minerva standing beside the table - which was full of a nice dinner meal - and pouring herself a glass of...wine? Was that wine?

Minerva looked at him with a bashful smile. "I like wine now," she said as if it was still surprising her.

"What's...what's this?" the Doctor was careful in taking a step forwards. She didn't look mad, but he'd be damned if he fell for that one again.

Minerva put down the glass and walked towards him, ignoring his small flinch, and encased him in a big hug.

"I'm...confused…" he said slowly.

A couple minutes passed before she pulled away. "What if there was nothing?" she questioned, further confusing him. "What if there never was anything? Nothing under the bed, nothing at the door. What if...the big bad Time Lord didn't want to admit he's just afraid of the dark." She smiled and cupped his face. "You are the bravest man I have ever met, but I know that even you get scared. And you should be able to just _tell_ me these things."

"Minerva…" it was clear the Doctor was not comfortable with this topic, which made Minerva even more determined.

"There's no shame in admitting it."

"I don't..."

"Just tell me, tell me that you were afraid."

"Minerva-"

"Tell me you were afraid, Martian," Minerva leaned closer. "Tell me you were afraid of the monster under the bed." There was a strange flash of emotion across the Doctor's eyes. He sighed and let his head hang, as if he were in shame. Minerva pressed her forehead to his. "It's okay my Martian."

"I...was afraid," he whispered faintly. Minerva's lips spread into a small smile. "I was afraid...and I wanted to know what it was…"

"There we go," her blue eyes looked up at his, "That's all you needed to say to me."

"It's hard…" he admitted. "I don't...I don't _like_ being afraid…"

"It's okay," Minerva assured. She pressed a kiss to his lips and smiled once more. "I think we can finally put this whole matter to rest, don't you think?" the Doctor nodded, figuring it was for the best now. "There we go. And now that you've admitted it...we can have some nice dinner," she made a gesture to the table. "Sort of my way to apologize for my words earlier."

"It smells delicious," the Doctor kissed her cheek. "Although that wine..."

"I won't have a lot, I promise. But c'mon..." she walked them to the table and pulled out two chairs for them. However, the Doctor pulled her onto his lap with a rather keen smirk on his face. She laughed and kissed him before they finally got onto dinner.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Sorry for the lateness but here's the chapter! I always thought this episode was a little weird with some unexplained things. I always wondered how the TARDIS linked Clara to the Doctor's younger self in that barn like...was it her echoes the TARDIS tapped into? Or...what? I don't know, that was just me.

 **For the Review:**

Yeah, the regeneration was something I thought of at the last moment. I did it because I wanted to have a completely different Minerva for the run of 12 that would eventually have Missy too. Well with Minerva added in there some things will have to change with the Doctor & Missy considering the things the Master had done to Minerva in the past. When you say 'friendship' did you mean friendship between Minerva and Missy/Master? Or her friendship with someone else?

* * *

Well, that's pretty much it for now! As usual, thank you for reading and leave a comment or a thought if you'd like! :)


	5. Time Heist

"Mine! Mine! ...mine?" Elias had picked up a small bracelet near Clara's bedroom door and stared at it for a moment before happily saying, "Mine!" and ran straight into the room.

Clara watched the toddler going for her closet and shook her head, not even going to waste time in telling him 'no'. The terrible twos were arriving earlier and she wanted no part in that.

"Oh, you followed my advice," Minerva popped in from the hallway and leaned on Clara's opened doorway. "Pants-suit. Told you it'd look better."

"Are we done yet?" the Doctor soon came after her, looking rather impatient.

"Oh no dear, I think we're flying solo today - Clara's going out."

Elias came out of Clara's closet carrying one of Clara's larger purses which he had used to stuff in what he already claimed 'his' from her hallway. "Mine!" he declared happily.

"I'm gonna need that back next week," Clara playfully warned him, pointing at him through the mirror's reflection.

"And it doesn't match you by the way," Liv appeared sitting on Clara's bed.

"Where to, Clara?" Minerva brought the woman's attention back to them.

"Why is your face all colored in?" the Doctor was staring at Clara in confusion. "Are you taller?"

Clara kicked a leg out to show him her black heeled boots. "Heels?"

"What, do you have to reach a high shelf?"

Both Liv and Minerva snickered.

"Mine!" Elias had come up to Clara's armoire and opened the lowest drawer which revealed neatly folded blouses. "Mine!" he grabbed the first blouse he saw and dropped it into the purse. "Mine-" he was about to grab the next blouse, a bright red one, when Clara snatched him from the floor. "No, Ca-yah! No! Mine!" he fussed as Clara gave him a kiss on his head.

"Stay out of my drawers," she playfully warned then handed him to Minerva. "Going to be late," she said and started down the hallway.

"For a shelf?" the Doctor was still stuck on that, making the other two women laugh again.

"Bye!" Clara was about to leave the apartment when the TARDIS phone began to ring. She glanced back then saw the two aliens slowly coming out of her hallway. "Gonna get that?"

"I suppose so," Minerva shrugged and turned for the TARDIS.

"No, wait a minute," the Doctor reached for her to stop her from going inside.

"What?"

"Who's calling at this hour?"

"Our friends?" Minerva reminded slowly. "My family?"

"Or it could be _her_ ," the Doctor whispered like it was the biggest secret ever.

Although this attracted Clara's attention. "Who now?" her hand left the door knob as she walked back to them.

Minerva rolled her eyes, looking like she was discarding the Doctor's idea in a snap. "No one. River's been taking to playing prank calls. He gets annoyed."

Clara didn't look like she was believing it, but Minerva was indeed telling the truth. "I'm gonna answer it," Clara declared and hurried into the box.

"What about your date?" Liv called but knew it was such a hopeless case now.

"If it's River I swear to God, Minerva…" the Doctor muttered as he followed Minerva inside, hearing her giggle at him.

~0~

The Doctor was the first to scream as he woke up holding a memory worm in his hand. Minerva came to second, then Clara.

"Oh, that is _gross_!" Minerva let the memory worm fall to the floor as did the rest.

Clara looked around and noticed there were two more people sitting with them at the table. "Where are we? How did we get here?" the last thing she remembered was answering the stupid phone call in the TARDIS.

"What is _that_?" Minerva laid eyes on the silver briefcase sitting in the center of the table.

"Who are you?" spoke the second man in the room. "Sorry, what's going on? I don't understand."

Clara was horrified as she saw the third woman's face morph a bit when she touched the memory worm. "What happened to your face?"

"Where's Elias!?" Minerva fiercely looked around the room for their missing toddler.

"And Liv?" Clara asked, finding she too was short of one person.

"How did we even get here?" the second man insisted, revealing to have metal implants along his head.

"The same way we all did, but we've all forgotten," the Doctor began fitting in the pieces little by little.

"And who are you?" demanded the third woman suspiciously.

But at that moment, a recording from the briefcase began to play, and it was the Doctor's voice that filled the room.

" _I am the Doctor, a Time Lord from Gallifrey. I have agreed to this memory wipe of my own free will_."

" _I am Minerva Souza, or rather Kaeya Louvier for this is an official matter. I am a Moontsay from the Silver Monsoon and I have agreed to this memory wipe of my own free will. Also, Elias is safe and sound with Martha."_

As soon as Minerva heard the last part, her entire body relaxed. Whatever they were about to face she could do it now with her entire focus.

" _I am Clara Oswald, human. I have agreed to this memory wipe of my own free will. Do I really have to touch that worm thing?"_

" _Yes you do_ ," they heard the Doctor in the background, " _And change your shoes."_

They could practically hear Clara rolling her eyes. " _Oh! And Liv can't be there because the memory wipe doesn't work on her_."

" _That's_ supposed to make me feel better?" frowned Clara. "Why can't Liv be here?"

"Clara, it's fine," Minerva shushed her just as there came another recording.

" _I am Psi - augmented human. I have agreed to this...memory wipe of my own free will_."

Hearing his own confession, Psi pulled a chip from the side of his head, _literally_ , and saw it read 'Memory Compromised'.

" _I am Saibra - mutant human. I have agreed to this memory wipe of my own free will_."

With everyone's confessions, the briefcase's lock turned green as it opened up. Soon as it did there was a screen that popped up. An elaborate 'K' appeared momentarily before a man in a cloak took over the screen.

" _This is a recorded message_ ," he began in a distorted manner. " _I am the Architect. Your last memory is of receiving a contact from an unknown agency - me. Everything since has been erased from your minds. Now, pay close attention to this briefing_." The screen flickered to show a planet while the Architect continued explaining. " _This is the Bank of Karabraxos - the most secure bank in the galaxy_." Zooming in, the bank was shown to be a building that looked part pyramid and part fortress. " _A fortress for the super-rich. If you can afford your own star system, this is where you keep it. No-one sets foot on the planet without protocols. All movement is monitored, all air consumption regulated. DNA is authenticated at every stage. Intruders will be incinerated. Each vault, buried deep in the earth, is accessed by a drop-slot at the planet's surface. It's atomically sealed - an unbreakable lock. The atoms have all been scrambled. Your presence on this planet is unauthorized. A team will have been dispatched to terminate you._ "

At that moment, someone banged on the door. "This is bank security! Open up!"

 _'Your survival depends on following my instructions.'_

"Open up and you shall be humanely disposed of!" the people on the other side ordered.

"Of course, put us in the bank before giving us instructions," Minerva huffed as they all rose from their chairs.

"There's another exit," Saibra pointed to the hidden door towards Clara's seat.

 _'All the information you need is in this case.'_

Psi pulled out a wire from his head that connected to basically anywhere, in this case to the computer with the recording. The code then ran through his eyes, once again freaking Clara out.

"What are you doing?" she couldn't help ask.

"Downloading."

"Ah. Augmented - nice," the Doctor remarked.

 _'The Bank of Karabraxos is impregnable. The Bank of Karabraxos has never been breached. You will rob the Bank of Karabraxos.'_

"We we will just see about that won't we?" Minerva crossed a glance with the Doctor. The Time Lord had already telepathically communicated to her a getaway.

Their grand escape was to merely leave the room through the other door and left the worms where the guards would hopefully touch them. It would buy them some time of course...but they would inevitably find more guards if the place was truly that well guarded.

They ran down a hallway, into another, and another...

"OK, OK, OK. Stop, stop, stop!" the Doctor called to the new group, heavily breathing. "Far enough."

"Whoever planned this I'm gonna kill," Minerva leaned against the wall, taking a moment to catch her breath.

The Doctor agreed and started examining their temporary crew, stopping with Psi. "Augmented human. Computer-augmented, yes? Mainframe in your head?"

Psi frowned. "I'm a gamer. Sorry, who put _you_ in charge?"

"Oh please, save us some time," Minerva rolled her eyes. "It's how you'll survive. Period."

"You're a liar," the Doctor scowled at the man. "That's a prison code on your neck."

Psi seemed surprised they had already figured it out. "I'm a hacker...slash bank robber."

"Good. This is a good day to be a bank robber." The Doctor then turned to Saibra. "Mutant human. What kind of mutant?"

Saibra frowned. "Like he says, why are _you_ in charge now?"

Minerva sighed in annoyance. Had she not just given an explanation already?

"It's my special power - what's yours?" the Doctor returned with, sparing his wife an amused smile. Yes, she grew more irritated by people a whole lot easier now.

Instead of answering with words, Saibra showed it. She took Clara's hand and allowed everyone to see how her entire body changed to an exact copy of Clara.

"Two Clara's...been there done that too," Minerva remarked.

"I touch living cells - I can replicate the owner," Saibra then explained.

"Your face, when we first saw you…" Clara was reminded of how the woman had changed into the worm as well.

"I touched the worm."

"You can replicate their clothes too?"

"I wear a hologram shell."

"Fascinating," Minerva purposely cut them off and turned to the Doctor. "Plan?"

The Doctor smirked as he held out a small rectangular device he had taken from the briefcase. "Human cells. DNA from a customer, maybe? A disguise to get us in?"

"We're actually going to do it? _Rob_ the bank?" Clara blinked.

"I don't think we have a choice - we've already agreed to," the Doctor gestured to the way in which they had come through.

"Then let the heist begin," Minerva said with a tint of a smirk at the corner of her lips.

~ 0 ~

With Saibra changed into a distinguished-looking man, the groupd strode into the main room of the bank, acting as if they were all meant to be there.

"Question one - robbing banks is easy if you've got a TARDIS. So why am I not using it?" the Doctor couldn't help feel a bit frustrated he was at such a disadvantage.

However, his wife had a much bigger question. "The real question number one is _where_ the TARDIS is, dear."

"Oh, oh yeah," the Doctor nodded in agreement.

Suddenly, the lights of the room flickered down and the doors all barred shut. A male voice went off over the speakers. ' _Banking floor locking down_.'

Saibra was the first to stop, with a gasp. "They know we're here."

 _'Banking floor locking down.'_

"What a look," Minerva remarked as a tall woman with bright ginger hair - that was tightly pulled back - and black glasses, wearing all leather black clothing, walked into the room.

"No you meant what is _that_?" Clara gasped as they saw something, a humanoid creature with eyes at its end of its appendages, in a red spacesuit come in after the woman. "And why is it shackled?" she whispered after catching the shackles on its legs and arms.

"I hate not knowing," the Doctor muttered.

The woman, known as Ms. Delphox, walked straight towards a man who seemed worse for wear. "Excuse me, sir. I regret to say that your guilt has been detected."

"What?" the man faltered. "That...that's totally ridiculous."

"Is it, sir?" Delphox tilted her head. "Well, then, we will certainly double-check. The Teller will now scan your thoughts for any criminal intent. Good luck, sir." With a small smile she stepped aside and let the creature, the Teller, approach.

"Interesting," the Doctor remarked.

"What is?" asked Psi.

"The latest thing in sniffer dogs. Telepathic - it hunts guilt."

"Uh, what about _our_ guilt?" Clara suddenly got the idea of.

"Currently being drowned out," Minerva responded calmly, although the more Clara looked at her the more she suspected Minerva was not feeling any bit of guilt.

"What's he doing?" Saibra watched as the man held his hands to his temples like he was concentrating on something.

"If he has a plan, he's trying _not_ to think of it," the Doctor replied.

"Ever tried not thinking about something?" scoffed Psi.

"No," Clara replied slightly scared.

"You may have to," warned Saibra.

Suddenly, the Teller growled and lunged forwards. Delphox returned and with quite a smug face. "Ah, criminal intent detected. How naughty. What was your plan? Counterfeit currency in your briefcase, perhaps?"

"No, not at all, for God's sake," the man quickly shook his head.

"It doesn't really matter, we'll establish the details later," Delphox rolled her eyes. "The Teller is never wrong when it comes to guilt. Your account will now be deleted, and obviously your mind. Suppertime!"

The guards holding the Teller by the shackles held on tighter as the Teller grew closer to the man. Its eyes got together and emitted an energy beam at the man. The man gripped his head in terrible pain.

"Incredible," Minerva's eyes had widened in awe, yet there was a distinct strike of disgust.

"Wh-what's going on?" Clara whispered.

"It's wiping his mind…"

"Your next of kin will be informed, and incarcerated, as further inducement to honest financial transactions," Delphox informed the man who was still in the middle of screaming.

"But we've got to help him," Clara began going forwards when the Doctor grabbed her arm.

"He's gone already, it's over."

"He's in agony, look at him," Clara gestured to the man frantically.

"Clara those are not tears," Minerva began with a sigh, hating to have to explain this. "That's the inside of his head currently flowing from his eyes."

"Eugh," Clara froze on her spot.

"Never seen a creature like that," Minerva remarked as Delphox made sure to take away the scene.

"Hope we never see it," muttered Saibra.

When the coast was free, the group made it to a secluded a room. Across the entrance there was a breath-lock and so Saibra moved to open it up.

 _'Deposit booth locking. Please exhale. Your valuables will be transported up from the vault.'_

Saibra leaned forwards and breathed into the receptor, turning the light to a bright green. Afterwards, she reverted back to her normal self. "If he can break in here and plant this thing, then why does he need our help?" she questioned about the Architect.

"I suppose it would depend on just what we're supposed to be stealing," Minerva responded while she watched the Doctor walk over to the opened lock. He pulled out a case that held a device with connected wires and a timer.

"OK, well, I'm no expert, but...fuses, timer, I'm going to stick my neck out and say 'bomb'," The Doctor turned around to Psi expectantly. "Bank schematic...now."

Psi pulled out a device from his jacket and plugged it into the chip in his head. He brought up the schematics on one of the walls of the room.

The Doctor turned around to see the schematics for a moment. "The floor below is all service corridors - the veins and arteries of the bank." As he made way to the middle of the room, Psi disconnected the schematics. "He wants us to blow through the floor."

"But we'll die if we do that," Saibra said in horror.

"Well, not necessarily - there must be a plan."

"What if the plan is, we're blowing up the floor for someone else?" Clara dreaded to ask. "What if we're not supposed to make it out alive?"

"Oh Clara, do try not to be so...pessimistic," Minerva sighed lightly. "It can affect the team morale."

Saibra shot her a look. "What, and getting us blown up won't?"

"Well, only very, very briefly," the Doctor said distractedly as he studied the bomb.

Psi decided he had enough and shook his head. "Er, no, no way! Do you what you like. I'm going to take my chances out there."

"Psi!" Clara called after him.

"No, no, no, this guy - your mate - is a lunatic!"

"Excuse me but that is my husband you're talking about," Minerva stepped forwards. "And while that _is_ true, he's probably the only way you'll get out of here alive." Psi turned sideways, expecting apparently more of a reason to stick with them. Groaning lightly, Minerva began again. "C'mon, what do you want more than anything else? Because whatever it is I'm pretty sure it's in this bank. I mean, why else would you agree to rob the most impregnable bank in history?"

At this, Psi turned back completely. Her words had struck a truth he hadn't yet thought of. "Still don't understand why he's in charge," he nodded to the Doctor.

"Basically, it's the eyebrows," the Doctor informed.

"I'm still working on them," Minerva mumbled, earning herself a small look from him in return.

He activated the bomb and carefully put it on the floor. Then quickly, everyone sprang for the nearest walls in case the bomb actually went off with a bang. However, instead, there was only a measly little explosion that only made a small, localized hole in the floor.

"Oh, that's boring," Minerva remarked as everyone else slowly peeled themselves off the wall.

The Doctor, who was holding onto her, chuckled. "There's something you don't say much," she smirked as he pressed a kiss to her temple.

"C'mon on you two!" Clara groaned from her spot. In the middle of a heist, and they stop to flirt!?

They made it down to what seemed like a service basement full of water pipes and other sorts of conduits.

"Well, so, what are we supposed to do now? What's the plan?" asked Saibra after a good walk away from the hole that had been covered up with floor once again.

"I don't know," the Doctor shrugged. "The Architect set all this up, it should make sense. My personal plan is that a thing will probably happen quite soon."

Saibra's eyebrows rose. "So that's it. That's your plan?"

"Yep."

"A _thing_ will happen"

"A thing...probably."

Clara was the first to spy another briefcase and gasped. "Hey! I found another one!"

Quickly, they all gathered around the one case. The Doctor seemed happy about it, which surprised no one but the two newcomers.

"There you go! Thing time!"

"How does he get the cases here?" Clara asked the winning question.

"By breaking into the bank in advance of breaking into the bank," Minerva responded. "Gotta say I'd love to see his plans."

"How did he do that? And if he _can_ do that, why does he need us?"

"Who cares Clara," Minerva rolled her eyes. "It's not like we're gonna get the answers now, are we?"

"What _is_ our prob-prob-prob-prob...?" Psi had begun only to end with quite a stutter and jerks of his head.

"Are you okay?" Clara eyed him with concern.

"Drive glitch, it's fine."

"Guilt is our problem. Guilt, in this bank, is fatal. The Teller can hear it," the Doctor said to the group. "Ever since that first case was opened, we've been targets. The more we know about why we're here, the louder our guilt screams. That's why we wiped our memories - for our own safety. Now, once I open this-" he raised the case, "-I can't close it again."

"Would it be safer if only one of us learned it?" Psi curiously wondered.

"We're waiting for you to volunteer actually," Minerva revealed, earning several confused looks back.

"Er, why me?"

"Because you didn't need that memory worm, did you?" challenged the Doctor. "You're half-computer, you can perform a manual delete. You _can_ clear your thoughts."

"Okay," Psi took the case without an argument. He opened it up and saw its contents. "I don't know what it is. You may as well have a look."

The Doctor reached to pick the same device he had from the last case. Clara watched him turn it over and inspect it for a minute. "Well, what are they?"

"Not a clue."

"Hmm, interesting," Saibra remarked with a long look on the Time Lord.

"What is?"

"You're lying."

"Er, why would he be lyi-lyi-lyi-lying?" Psi bent over and took in a deep breath. "Ugh! Sorry. Stress. Drains the batteries."

The Doctor walked over to a nearby computer panel on the wall. "Interface with this," he commanded.

"Do we have time for this?" Saibra asked, full of impatience.

"Why not? There's no immediate threat."

But then, an alarm went off and a blaring computer voice went over the speakers. "

 _'Warning. Intruders detected.'_

"You _need_ to stop saying things like that, dear," Minerva huffed. "We've been over this!"

The Doctor agreed without a word. "Alright, you and Clara stay with Psi while Saibra and I go investigate."

"Be careful, okay?" Minerva moved forwards to give him a short kiss on the lips.

Meanwhile, Psi plugged himself, or part of himself, to silence the speakers. Next he plugged in the chip into his own head, although soon as he did he began to groan and quickly pulled it out, blew some air into it, then plugged it back in.

"Storm dust," he gave the two attentive woman a brief explanation.

Clara tilted her head at him, the curiosity just etching across her eyes. "You can delete your memories?"

"Yeah, it's not as fun as it sounds."

"I've got a few I wish I could lose."

"And I've lost a few I wish I hadn't," Psi sighed, pausing a moment as the two women exchanged glances. "No, I was...I was interrogated in prison. And I guess I panicked. I didn't want to be a risk to the people close to me, so…"

"You deleted your friends and family," Minerva concluded on her own.

Clara's eyes widened in horror. "How could you do that?" She she asked of Psi.

"One will go through many extremities to keep their beloveds safe, Clara," Minerva said before Psi could explain. "Or am I wrong?"

Psi gave a shake of his head. Of course she was right.

"We need to get going," Minerva said after a moment of silence. Psi had finished the new plug in about that time and frankly it was too quiet for her liking. "The Doctor's not making noise over there…"

"That's something to worry about," Clara remarked and soon followed Minerva down the hallway with Psi.

They caught up with the Doctor and Saibra by a wall with three small barred windows they were attentively looking into.

"Dare I ask…?" Minerva sighed, allowing Clara to take a look first.

Immediately Clara retracted with horror. "Oh, my God. Why is he even still alive?"

Meanwhile , Minerva took a turn and found the man of before, who'd been attacked by the creature, the Teller, inside with his wrists shackled to chains from the ceiling.

"I don't know. But someone is watching," the Doctor said as he gazed up to a wall camera.

"Doctor. However this goes, whatever happens... don't let me end up like that," Psi said after seeing himself.

 _'Intruders on the service level. Intruders on the service level.'_

Minerva rolled her eyes. "If someone doesn't quiet down that computer-" but the Doctor had taken her hand and pulled her down the corridor.

He stopped by a duct with a beam. "Now, this says, 'Place to hide.'" He let go of Minerva's hand to use the sonic over the duct cover.

Once it was done he got Minerva to go in right after him, followed by Clara, Saibra and Psi. Being the first to crawl out, the Doctor hurried to see what laid on the other side of the glass.

"Where are we _now_?" Saibra asked tiredly.

Seeing the Teller, the Doctor jerked back and quickly warned the others. "Nobody move. Nobody say a word. It's cocooned. Forced hibernation. Its power is probably dormant."

But it only lasted a second before it growled and someone of the group gasped as it turned to them.

"Minerva!" the Doctor felt both his hearts construct in terrible fear. Minerva's eyes had widened till the impossible , shocked herself. She didn't think it would be noticeable to the Teller. Apparently, she was wrong. "It's locked on to you. It may still be asleep, don't wake it," the Doctor carefully turned to his frozen wife.

"Trying really hard here, dear," she promised.

"Just...just...keep your mind blank. Block everything. Once it locks onto your thoughts, it won't let go."

Minerva forced her eyes to shut, but after a minute the Teller growled with a high-pitched whine. When it roared, the group decided it was time to run.

"This way!" Psi led them through the duct situated at the opposite side of the room.

Unfortunately, Saibra became trapped in the Teller's field. She fell to the floor.

"She's still in there. How do we get her out?" Clara frantically asked of the two aliens with her.

"It's scanning her brain," the Doctor said cautiously, still gripping Minerva's hand. He was sure this would make him a bad man, but he was a bit grateful that the Teller had momentarily forgotten about Minerva. It didn't mean he wanted Saibra to be caught, but, well...what could he do? He loved his wife more than anything, and he would do anything to keep her safe and happy.

Saibra winced as the Teller scanned her mind. Minerva panicked even more, knowing this was entirely her fault.

"Saibra!" she called to the woman.

"What should I do? How can I get away?" Saibra responded in a strained voice.

"It's rooting through your brain. It's tasting all the secrets stashed inside. Any moment now, it will finish its sweep and start feasting on what's left," the Doctor explained entirely so that she would know before making her choice.

"And then I become one of those things we saw, sitting in a cage! Can you not get me out?"

"I'm sorry. I don't know how, once it's locked onto your thoughts…"

"Exit strategy," Saibra realized. "That means what I think it means, right?"

The Doctor held up one of the devices found in the previous case, which had been in reality a sort of teleporter. "Atomic shredder."

"Painless?"

"And instant."

Saibra caught the device and took a breath. "When you meet the Architect, promise me something. Kill him."

"I hate him, but I can't make that promise," the Doctor honestly replied.

"A good man...I left it late to meet one of those," Saibra spread a tiny smile before activating the device.

The Teller roared as his victim disappeared, as well as the others.

~0~

The remaining group made it out of the corridor to see a prestigious vault.

"Right, vault, that's clear. What's not clear is what we do now," the Doctor said, looking back at the others, specifically Minerva.

Clara eyed the unusual quiet blonde with some concern. "You okay?"

At the question, Minerva raised her head with a facade of indifference. "I'm an amnesiac robbing a bank, not exactly at my best but...you know…"

The Doctor was having the hardest of times getting through to her telepathically. For some reason, she was not letting him in. There was something she clearly was keen on not telling him nor showing him.

"Doctor," Clara's voice brought him back to the present. She was nodding towards another case, the third one, sitting all lonesome across them.

With a sigh, he went over to retrieve it. "Another gift from the Architect. Shall we unwrap it?"

Finding another chip , Psi was quick to upload it into his own head drive. After a couple of moments, he ran into the security room with the rest. There they found a card reading "TECH 251 ORG 339 PV."

"Right, the system looks like it's time-delayed. There are 24 lock codes I need to break," Psi informed.

Minerva was the one to hear the Teller nearing them. "We don't have a lot of time…" she warned.

"We need it," argued the man.

Minerva seemed mortified but she was not going to allow them all to suffer on her account. "Fine," she promptly made a hand gesture for the Doctor to give her something. At the look of the Time Lord she rolled her eyes. "Device, now. I should like to know that if i do get caught I have another escape. Anywhere else is preferable than have my brain turned to soup."

The Doctor was so stunned he couldn't make a proper sentence to tell her how ridiculous this idea was. Fortunately, Clara stepped in with similar thoughts.

"That's awful! You can't take that thing- we don't know where you could end up!"

"Better than here," Minerva reaffirmed. "Doctor, _now_ ," she trained angry hazel-green eyes on his. The Doctor gripped the last of the devices and shook his head. "It's locked on to one of our thought trails. We have to split up, minimize the brain signals."

"There's no point-"

Now it was the Doctor who turned angry. "Of course there is a point! The point is trying to save _you_!"

Minerva couldn't think of anything else when the Doctor grabbed her hand and told Clara to follow them out. Psi was left behind to unlock the vault.

"What exactly is the plan?" Clara ran right behind them.

"Apparently get us all killed!" Minerva exclaimed, running now beside him.

"Separate, Clara, now!" the Doctor flat out ignored the blonde.

Clara swallowed hard, terrified, but did it anyways. She went the opposite corridor. The Doctor stopped at a corner, with Minerva right beside him. As he looked out, Minerva eyed his coat's pocket.

Eventually, they started running again, with the Teller hot on their trails.

"It's getting closer, Martian!" Minerva exclaimed as they ran down a new corridor.

The Doctor saw there was no point in running more. He stopped abruptly and turned to her, hands settled on her shoulders, gripping them. "Whatever it is you are thinking of, stop it!" he frantically ordered her. "Keep your mind clear, blank, but do it now!"

Minerva's eyes were filled with newfound guilt for him. "I...can't," she said quietly, outright defeated.

"What?" The Doctor whispered, looking far more stunned than earlier. "Minerva, what are you going on about? What are you not telling me?"

Before Minerva answered, she felt herself constricted and the Doctor realized the Teller was now coming for them. He immediately backed away lest he be caught and then who would save his wife!?

"M-Minerva-"

Minerva was already smirking, despite her predicament. "Get out of here, Martian, get back to our son. And tell Liv and Clara that...that I tried...I really did," she revealed to have the atomic device in her hand, the one she had secretly stolen from the Doctor. " _Run_." She added again with more ferocity before activating the device and disappearing.

The Doctor broke into a stumbling run again, too out of it to be properly furious. Just as Psi was finishing up the unlocking procedure, the Doctor and Clara ran back in. Neither Psi nor Clara dared to ask the whereabouts of the blonde.

 _'Three, two, one... Failed. Vault unlocking. Failed.'_

"What?" frowned Psi as the vault remained locked.

The Doctor frowned deeper than ever and hurried up to the computer. Whipping out the sonic, he used it on the lock again, the last of it, and removed the front panel to work deeper within. "Atomic seal. Unbreakable. Even for me. The Architect would know that. He wouldn't bring us all this way for nothing. He wouldn't...he wouldn't let her get killed…"

Clara sadly looked upon the Time Lord, wondering if the Architect even cared whether the entire recruited team made it out alive. A proper criminal wouldn't.

"Come on, Architect! What else have you got?" demanded the Doctor in a louder voice.

Thunder rumbled, and strongly that the machinery beside them began radically beeping. It took a moment for the Doctor to realize it was interfering with the system of the bank.

"A storm... The storm's tripping the system…" he backed away, running a hand through his hair. "That's what he's got - a storm!"

"How would he know _when_ a storm would hit?" Clara blinked.

"Whoever planned all this, they're in the future. This isn't just a bank heist... it's a _time-travel_ heist. We've been sent back in time to the exact moment of the storm, to be in exactly the right place when it hits, because that's the only time the bank is vulnerable!"

And at that moment the vault opened up.

 _'Vault unlocked.'_

"The bank is now open," Psi turned just as the others did the same.

They stepped into the huge vault.

"It explains why we're not here in the TARDIS," the Doctor remarked only lightly passively.

"Sorry, what?" Clara asked for a repeat. She didn't understand what one had to do with the other.

"The solar disruption would have made navigation impossible. The one time the bank is vulnerable is the one time we can't just land."

And then it popped in Clara's head. "Doctor...the code! The code that was in the last case. Look. Tech!"

"Technology. 251. Find it," ordered the man, returning to his sulk mood.

After searching in the room for a good five minutes, Clara came to be the winner. "Tech."

The Doctor and Psi and hurried over to open the drawer together. Inside was a small box that the Doctor quickly opened up to find a cylindrical device inside. "It's a neophyte circuit. I've only ever seen one once before. It can reboot any system. Replace any lost data."

Clara blinked and looked back at Psi who had already made his connections. "That's what I came for?"

"Your reward," the Doctor rather rudely pushed the device to Psi.

"So, what did Saibra come for?" Clara inquired after moment of silence. She knew he was slowly entering the second phase of loss - anger. Well, she wasn't sure if there were even stages he was going through because the Doctor's face was just unreadable. She supposed he was saving up all those emotions for when they came face to face with the Architect. God help that person.

The Doctor moved into the next section and found inside a box just like the first one. There was a vial waiting inside. "Gene suppressant," he carelessly pocketed the vial.

"She wanted to be normal," Clara recalled Saibra's one wish.

"Everyone has a weakness. So, the big question is this - what did we come for?" the Doctor gritted his teeth together.

Psi turned over the card he held and read it again, "PV?"

"Private vault. Karabraxos's own fortune?" The Doctor made to turn, intending on meeting this architect once and for all to settle scores. He wasn't sure what happened to his wife, whether she was alive or not, and he needed his TARDIS to be able track her. All this was just a waste of time.

Unfortunately, he came face to face with the Teller.

~0~

Delphox waited for her intruders to be brought into her office. She beamed at the sight of the trio being led in by two guards. "Intruders are most welcome. They remind us that the bank is impregnable. It's good for morale to have a few of you scattered about the place, preferably on view. Are you ready for _your_ close-up? If you're thinking of ways to escape, the Teller will know before you've even made a move. You'll never be bothered by all that thinking again."

"Useful species," remarked the Doctor, laying cold eyes on the woman.

"Last of its kind, and we've signed an exclusive deal."

"Must be noisy inside its head. Painful to listen to so much chatter, so many secrets... Must drive it wild. How can you force it to obey?"

A wicked grin spread across the woman's face as she responded with, "Oh, everything has a price tag, I think you'll find." With a crackles of a thunder she lost her train of thought. "The storm's getting worse. Customers are leaving. Director Karabraxos will soon be... concerned. Our jobs will be on the line."

"You're scared," Clara realized, unsure whether to be sardonic about it or not.

"Oh, I'm terrified. I have the disadvantage of knowing Karabraxos personally," Delphox gave a light sigh.

"If you don't like your boss, why stay?"

"My face fits. Now...if you'll excuse me, I must take the Teller to its hibernation." She then addressed the two guards behind the trio. "You two, dispose of our guests."

Delphox then led the Teller away from the room. The two guards then pushed the trio towards the wall.

"Don't do this. I'm having a very bad day, and I do not want to be pushed around," warned the Doctor as his back hit the wall.

One of the guards moved closer, far closer than what he liked. The same guard then moved their hands up to the Doctor's wrists.

"Get the hell away-" but the man hissed at the prickling cold that started at his wrists. "That's cold! That's _very, very_ cold-" he straightened up then, eyes widened, "...it's _cold_ …" he said quietly then.

The 'guard' removed their helmet to reveal blonde hair underneath, along with a devious smirk. "I still got it," Minerva said triumphantly. While the Doctor sputtered his handcuffs began to chip apart until they became bits falling to the floor. "This bank has got everything...except anti-Moontsay material."

Clara watched in bemusement as the second guard morphed back into Saibra. "How did you…?"

"It _looked_ like death but it was actually a teleporter," Saibra said happily.

"Devious plan," Minerva praised as she froze Clara's handcuffs so that they too would break apart. "You think we're dead, so the Teller thinks we're dead, and we play the creature at his own mind games."

The Doctor was closer to gathering his bearings as he shook his head. "No, no, wait, wait, wait, wait! What? Sorry, sorry, what? You, you, you're...you're alive?"  
Minerva turned and walked up to him. "Shut up Martian," she grabbed him by the lapels and kissed him soundly. For a moment she had thought she would be dying as well.

Clara was all for having love in the air but there was a line and the two had begun crossing it. She loudly cleared her throat, about to speak when someone else did for her.

"Minerva could you make out _after_ we rob the bank?" Liv had appeared sitting on the desk behind them, heavily alarming Psi and Saibra.

"Liv!" Clara gasped happily and dashed to greet her friend with a hug.

Liv laughed as she hugged back. "Missed you Clara."

"Where'd you go? Why didn't you come before?" Clara frantically asked the questions.

"I didn't know where you were going," Liv said, looking at Minerva and the Doctor. "The Doctor refused to tell me anything after that call."

"But you know who the Architect is?" Clara immediately thought of.

"No, sorry. But then Minerva appeared in the TARDIS where I was left waiting!"

"You found the TARDIS?" The Doctor looked down at Minerva.

"There's an escape ship in orbit. That's where the devices takes you. Our Box of Wonders is right there."

"I'm sorry, who are you?" Psi looked suspiciously at Liv. "How did you get in here?"

"I popped in, didn't you see?" Liv blinked. "I really hate explaining myself twice to you two," she said for both him and Saibra. "I get the memory worms took it away from you but really, can't we just wait till the memories are back?"

"Well, this is good," the Doctor spoke up for the first time, and immediately Clara could tell the big difference in his tone. He had become his old self - his old rude, blunt self but himself now that Minerva turned out to be safe...and alive. The Doctor tossed Saibra her rightful vial, causing the woman to scramble and catch it. "Gene suppressant - antidote for your condition."

"Really?" Saibra, stunned, stared at her vial for a long minute.

"Is that the pay, then?" Minerva asked, leaning forwards to catch sight of Psi. "What was yours?"

Psi raised the circuit still in his hand. "All my memories."

"Good," Minerva looked around for a bit. "Where's our pay?"

"There's still something in the private fault," the Doctor answered, well semi-answered considering none of them knew what laid behind the door.

Regrouped, they all headed for the secret vault. As they neared it, there were several pipelines along with other curious, mysterious things.

"What's that?" Clara pointed beside them.

"Supply line," Liv replied without so much as a glance. "It's the only oxygen down to the private vault. There's another one for water for basic life support."  
Clara gave her imaginary friend a long look. "I did research in the TARDIS. I got bored."

They soon made into the private fault which turned out to be more like a private office full of priceless artifacts. There was soft classical music playing in the background.

Minerva crinkled her nose at the sight. "Absolutely _boring_ ," she declared and walked towards the lone wingback chair behind a desk. "You, director Karabraxos, we're here to rob you so if you could just save us the time and raise your hands-"

But Minerva was cut off by her shock to see an exact replica of Miss Delphox sitting at the desk.

"Or?" Karabraxos arched an eyebrow. "You didn't bring any weapons. That's a bit of an oversight." She leaned towards a comm. On the desk. "Security, Karabraxos here."

"You're Karabraxos?" the Doctor moved forwards.

"What is this?" Minerva looked at the Doctor half angry and half annoyed.

Karabraxos continued talking over the comm. asking for the Teller to be brought in from Delphox.

"She's a clone," Liv moved forwards as well to confirm the idea.

"It's the only way to control my own security. I have a clone in every facility," Karabraxos momentarily looked up to explain then ordered Delphox to get on the task quick. But then she added, "And then hand in your credentials. You're fired, with immediate effect."

"But, please, I've been in your service…" Delphox barely got to say when Karabraxos cut her off again.

"Ever since the last one let me down and I was forced to kill it. I can't quite believe that you're putting me through this again." Karabraxos ended the call and looked at the others, quite bemused. "My clone. And yet she doesn't even protest. Pale imitation, really. I should sue!"

"You're killing her? You just said…" poor Clara was in a mixture of confusion and disgust.

"Fired? I put all of the used clones into the incinerator. Can't have too many of moi scattered around."

"Sorry, you don't get on with your own clone?" Psi asked, overly confused as well.

Minerva scoffed loudly. "How pathetic, can't even get along with your own self," she smirked. "You'd give a hell of a lot of business towards a therapist-"

"Shut up," the Doctor suddenly spoke up, eyes widened as could be, but he missed Minerva's offended glance.

"Excuse me-"

"Not the time darling, shhh!" he placed a finger over her lips, once again missing the arch of an eyebrow sent his way.

"And what is this display now, as amusing as you are?" Karabraxos stared at the two.

"Shut up! Just shut up, shut up, shut up, shutetty up up up!" he snapped his fingers as he searched through his memory and then pointed at Saibra.

"What...what did you say? What did...you say? What did you say...about your own eyes? De-shut up, say it again."

Saibra, although confused herself, answered his question. "How can you trust someone if they look back at you out of your own eyes?"

"I know one thing about the Architect. What is it that I know? I know one thing, something I've known from the very start."

"And that would be…?" Liv waited with arms crossed.

"I hate him. He's overbearing, he's manipulative, he likes to think that he's very clever. I _hate_ him. Clever Girl, don't you see?" some how, he had been pacing and ended up near a gong which he then hit. "I hate the Architect!"

"What did the gong have to do with that?" Minerva made a face.

"Missing the point!" he pointed at her.

Karabraxos rose from her desk, annoyed. "What in the name of sanity is going in this room now?"

"We're getting sanity judgment from the self-burner," the Doctor chortled and hurried up to the desk."Do you mind if I borrow a little bit of paper?"

"And what are you doing now?"

"I'm with the self-burner now, what are you doing?" Minerva eyed as her husband quickly wrote down.

"I'm giving you...my telephone number."

"Did I hear right?" Minerva tapped one of her ears. "You're giving another woman your telephone number?"

"Strictly business, darling," the Doctor clarified but she scoffed again.

"Right, better prove that before I hop into the past and give my phone number to Da Vinci."

Momentarily horrified, he looked at her. "Don't you dare."

"Try me."

"Doctor!" Clara sighed and clapped her hands to get the attention back on the group.

Still with a lingering - now pleading - look at Minerva, he placed the paper on the desk for Karabraxos. "You might want to call us someday when you...realize your mistakes," he said slowly for the ginger woman.

Karabraxos eyed the paper that read 'We're time travelers' outside then looked up at the Doctor just as another thunder roared outside.

"Oh, that was a big one, wasn't it?" remarked the man. "I think that your bank is about to close for good, Karabraxos. If I was you, I'd get going. Don't mind us, we'll just stay here and burn."

Karabraxos remained there however, still questioning his motives. Finally, Minerva lost her patience and clapped her hands. "GO!"

Startled, the woman hurried to collect her valuables.

Liv popped in beside her, once again startling the woman. "Hmm, hard to know what to take, isn't it?" she tilted her head, making the group behind think. "I mean, the greatest treasures of the universe in just _one_ suitcase?"

"Doctor, what's the plan? _Is_ there a plan?" Clara felt like a broken record but truly there had been too many close calls and she wasn't up for another one.

"We can use the shredders, get back to the ship," Saibra reminded.

"They're not shredders, they're teleports, and that's not the most interesting thing about them," the Doctor then called to Karabraxos. "Hey. Give us a call me some time."

"You'll be dead," the woman sounded scornful.

"And you'll be old," countered Minerva. "I'd love to see how we'd mix then."

"You'll be old and full of regret for the things that you can't change," the Doctor continued.

Karabraxos looked at them both another moment then hurried out of the room.

"Doctor, what the hell is going on?" Clara now fully demanded, huffing even.

"Are you remembering?" inquired Psi as the man remained sitll for a moment.

"No, not a thing. But I'm understanding."

"What is it? What are you understanding?"

"I'm not sure yet. I need my memory back. And I think there is only one way to do that…"

Minerva's sigh interrupted any further questions. "You're going to do a stupid plan, aren't you?"

The Doctor's lips curled into a widened smirk. "Would it be me if I didn't?"

"What. What's he talking about?" Clara looked from one to the other.

"Soup," Minerva answered with a mutter.

"Soup?"

"Soup," the Doctor nodded, looking more eager by the second. "Love you," he planted a kiss on Minerva's hair as a pre-apology when the doors opened up with the Teller inside.

"Owe me big time," Minerva warned as the Doctor approached the nearing Teller.

"Hello, big man. Peckish?"

The Teller put his two stalks together and scanned the Doctor who promptly fell to the floor. Seeing Minerva trying to near them, the Doctor called out, in a strained tone, not to. "No...no, let it take me. Let it read me. It's the only way!"

"It will kill you!"

"Just stay back!" the Doctor practically ordered. He now had the Teller searching through his mind. "Right, that's it... There are so many memories in here. Feast on them. Tuck in. Big scarf, bow tie, bit embarrassing. What do you think of the new look? I was hoping for minimalism, but I think I came up with magician! In the last few days, there's been a block. Can you see the block? Tell me why I'm here! Show me why I'm here! Show me!"

And then he saw it all. Everything.

Clara had answered the phone just like she wanted to. An elder woman asked for the Doctor and when she got word with him she began to explain herself.

 _"You gave me this number. My name is Madame Karabraxos. I was once...the wealthiest person in the Universe. I need your assistance. I'm dying. With many, many regrets...but one...perhaps... you may be able to help me with."_

Being curious of the matter, Clara agreed first they should do it. They should rob the bank.

But needing to forget what they had learned required the Memory worms. While Minerva scoured for the worms, Clara and Liv brought Elias to Martha Jones via vortex manipulator. The Doctor remained in the TARDIS searching for some other companions for the job. Somewhere in the middle he was able to get skin cells from the man Saibra had initially morphed into to get through the breath lock.

Then he recorded his message for the group as the Architect.

The cases and memory worms were placed in the bank before they arrived without memories.

The Teller pulled back from the Doctor, and immediately Minerva rushed to help the Doctor up. "Did you see... why we came? Why we're here? We had to delete our own memories, otherwise you'd have known, and then she'd have known. Because you're mentally linked. But she's gone now. They've _all_ gone. They have no power over you now. You can do exactly what you want to do now. Exactly what you've always wanted to do."

The Teller stopped in its tracks and, with telekinesis, unlock the inner safe.

"It knows the combination!" Psu exclaimed.

"Of course it does, it was linked to Karabraxos," the Doctor reminded.

"What exactly are we doing here?" Clara couldn't believe she was seeing this. "That thing killed people."

"So might you do, to protect everything you loved," the Doctor responded softly, wrapping one arm around his wife, getting brief flashbacks of his moments where he went in search of her at Demons Run.

When the inner vault door opened, tbe group were stunned to find another creature like the Teller, chained to the wall. She wailed in what had to be agony.

"Not the last of its species. The last _two_ ," Minerva said with half-widened eyes.

They helped the female creature out of the cell by breaking off the chains.

"Exit strategy. We've got seven shredders," remembered Saibra.

Liv smiled. "This wasn't a bank heist - it never was. It was rescue mission, for a whole species. Flesh and blood - the last currency."

~0~

Everything had been a big ole breeze afterwards, from finding a solitary place for the Teller and his mate a new home to sending Psi and Saibra back home. The only ones who remained on board a little longer was Clara and Liv.

"Minerva go to bed too?" Clara asked as she gathered her jacket to leave as well.

The Doctor looked up from the console with a small shake of his head. "Elias."

"Ah," Clara missed the confusion on the Doctor's face.

He had missed Minerva leaving as well, and with their picked up son. "Well, 7.12, local time, as promised. Go and enjoy yourself. Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

Clara playfully rolled her eyes. "That's advice. C'mon Liv."

Liv walked behind her with a weary face. "I don't actually have to go, right? I feel like a third wheel, and worse because only you can see me!"

Clara laughed as the two left the box. Right away, the Doctor dematerialized from Clara's apartment and headed for the corridors to find his wife and get some answers.

~0~

Minerva sat silently at one of the library tables with a book on one side and a journal on the other, pen in hand. She was so entirely focused she didn't realize the Doctor walked in until he called her name. Immediately she stuffed the journal in the book and turned the book over to hide its cover.

The Doctor of course saw the actions, even as she rose from her chair feigning innocence.

"Did Elias wake?" she asked.

"No, he's still out like a light." The Doctor then reached to take his hand, nodding her to take it. She did without protest and let him lead them towards one of the empty couches. He sat down and motioned her to take seat beside him as well.

Minerva seemed thoughtful over something and then, with a harmless smirk, she sat on the Doctor's lap instead. He had to laugh a little afterwards.

"What was on your mind, dear?" Minerva then asked, draping one arm around his neck.

"Actually, I'd rather like to know what's on _your_ mind," the Doctor replied, tapping her nose. "Such thoughts say...a Teller could see them?"

Minerva's entire demeanor faltered for a moment but she easily retained it again. "I...don't know…"

"Minerva, I know you, please, can we skip the part where you fake like you have no idea when in reality your head is full of different ideas?"

Minerva resigned. She sighed and started her apology. "I'm sorry Martian, I am, but I can't tell you...at least not right now."

"And why is that?"

"Because I'm not sure of what I suspect, that's all."

"Minerva…"

"I wouldn't ask you to leave it if I knew it was a danger to us, you know that-"

"Of course I know that but I also know that you tend-"

"Theta please I am just asking you for some time, that's all," Minerva tried to smile for him.

"Is it about Clara and Liv?" the Doctor called upon his vague memory of her words before 'dying'.

Minerva gave a small nod. "It's...it's a work in progress."

"Then let me help you," the Doctor pleaded again, reaching to caress her face. "We are the perfect team, remember?"

Minerva's smile widened. "Course we are, but...this is a but...just let me handle it, alright?"

"But that's my point, Clever Girl, you don't _have_ to handle it on your own. I _want_ to help."

"I know you do, and I promise as soon as I'm sure of it, you will be the first one to know, alright?" and perhaps just to persuade him, or maybe as a genuine innocent act, she leaned forwards till they were mere inches apart.

The Doctor knew when he was at a defeat with her. "If I'm not going to win then at least give me something to pass the time till you talk."

Minerva began to chuckle, nodding nonetheless. "That I can and will do, my bank-robbing Martian."

"I didn't rob-"

But Minerva had already begun kissing him, and who was he to end such a sweet thing?

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Hmm, what could Minerva be up to...? Time to get our Sherlock on *pulls up magnifying glass*.

 **For the Reviews:**

Ah, so you meant Minerva talking about the Doctor's & Master's friendship? I mean, like I said before I wouldn't erase that friendship even with Minerva in the mix. I can't remember how I set that up but I do know that at one point - whether it's with Clara or maybe Bill (because yes I'm reaching her point now) - but Minerva does acknowledge and talk about that friendship. So don't fret! :)

* * *

I apologize for the lateness in the updating but school has started again so there will be times where I just can't update. Still, thank you for reading and hope to hear your comments!


	6. A Caretaker's Job

Clara had always wanted to travel, and when she finally met Minerva and the Doctor she was ecstatic to have the chance to see further than any human had ever gotten to. In the beginning, when she was only babysitting the kids, it was nothing on her real human life. She was just doing a temporary job while running off to see exotic planets. It was the perfect order. She got to do what she wanted while keeping to her commitments on Earth.

But now things changed.

Now she was a school teacher - and she _loved_ being a school teacher - time travelling with energetic aliens plus their toddler who was entering early the terrible-twos stage. On top of that she was dating someone, Danny, and she really wanted it to work out but sometimes...the two lives clashed with the other. Liv would often share stories of how the companions before her - the Ponds - felt like that towards the end of their travels in the TARDIS.

That made Clara stop and think sometimes.

Was _she_ nearing the end of her TARDIS travels?

She didn't want to find out the answer, honestly, but the more her two lives bumped into each other the more thinking she found herself doing.

~0~

"Oh, you're going to _love_ this one," Liv popped into the teacher's lounge where Clara currently spoke to another teacher. Before Clara could give her a proper look, the head of the school, Armitage, announced there would be supplements for the week due to two employees becoming ill.

Liv was trying her best not to smirk behind the man.

He turned back to reopen the door that had accidentally closed on his way in. "You can come in now…"

Teachers were not expecting a small 1 and a half year old running/wobbling inside the room holding a green journal in hand. "Mine! Mine! Mine!" Elias laughed and let himself fall on his bottom to the floor.

Clara was mortified to see Elias calmly begin to pass the pages of his newfound journal while his parents walked in afterwards.

The Doctor was dressed in a brown coverall and held a broom - which Minerva insisted was not pertinent to this situation. Minerva on the mean hand dawned simple, yet graceful, clothes like a human would. She wore a dim emerald, silk blouse paired with black pants and black flats.

"The new caretaker," Armitage gestured to the Doctor who gave a wave. "John Smith and the temporary art teacher, Minerva Souza."

"Welcome to Coal Hill, Mister Smith," Danny Pink was the first to greet, "Miss Souza."

"Me?" Elias looked up mildly upset he had been omitted from the introductions.

"Oh, yes, of course," Danny smiled at the youngster, even bending down to be on the same level, "Welcome."

When Danny extended a hand to shake with Elias he panicked and quickly clutched the green journal in his small arms. "Mine!"

"Yes, one of your students might be missing a math journal," Minerva informed them.

Elias jumped from the floor and made a dash for Clara. "Look! Mine!" he showed off the journal, but Clara was trying really hard to act as if she didn't know the toddler. It wasn't like she wanted to purposely ignore the toddler - she loved Elias - but now was not the time to break the news to Danny that she was travelling with aliens whenever she wasn't at school or with him.

When Clara was finally able to get out of the lounge room, Danny walked her to her classroom.

"Do you know them?" He surprised her with.

"Know who now?" Clara tried looking anywhere that wasn't Danny. Liv always told her that when she was nervous she tended to go wide-eyed. Danny would definitely notice there was something going on if she was all 'wide-eyed' all the time.

"The caretaker and the art teacher," Danny gave her a pointed look. "That little boy sure seemed to know you."

Clara nervously chortled. "He would have come up to anyone."

"Are you sure?" Danny continued eyeing her. "Because he definitely looked like he knew you."

"Never seen him before in my life…"

"You're faltering," Liv appeared walking beside Clara.

Clara realized Liv was right. "Ah, I have, er, left some marking. Assembly. Chop-chop. Off you pop. Catch you in a bit. Excuse me."

~0~

In the storage room the Doctor had pulled up the blueprints of the schools while Minerva attended to Elias inside the TARDIS that was being stored in the same room. Minerva was supposed to be finding a babysitter for Elias in the meanwhile they were in school hours but the boy refused to go when the school was more exciting. He had never seen so many kids put together, and they seemed to like him too - specially the girls! Many of them said he was cute and he liked being called cute!

At which point Minerva confirmed that Elias was in fact the Doctor's son. The Doctor huffed back in annoyance.

"Mommy, look," Elias babbled on to Minerva about the funny symbols written across the journal.

Minerva was walking out of the TARDIS half interested and more amused. "Are you going to like math, Arlo? Is my son going to be a math nerd?"

"What's wrong with liking math?" the Doctor looked up from the blueprints. "I like math. You liked math at one point in your human years."

"Mm, dear, that was only to get you to keep teaching me while giving me... _extra_ attention," Minerva came by with a smirk, placing a hand on the Doctor's chest. "Remember?"

The Doctor remembered very well and smirked back. "Oh, I remember. We should get back to that some time soon…"

"Give me a time and date and I will be there," Minerva leaned over to gently kiss him.

"Mommy! Look, look!"

Minerva pulled back to see Elias holding some sort of algebraic equations up to her. "Definitely a future math nerd!"

At this point, Clara came rushing in with Liv at her side. "What are you doing here!?"

"That's rude," Minerva said first. "Not even a proper "hello"? I thought we were close."

Clara felt overly nervous and stressed so she was not up for Minerva's sarcasm. "Why are you undercover at my school? And where's Atif, and Grace, what have you done with them?"

The Doctor warded her off with his broom. "They're fine. Hypnotized. Atif thinks he's got the 'flu. Also a flying car and three wives. It's going to be a rude awakening."

"Well, Grace thinks she's a queen. That'll be quite the downgrade," Minerva smirked.

Clara found no amusement. "Is it aliens? Oh, my God, is that why you're here? Are there aliens?"

"It's assembly. You'd better get going," the Doctor shooed her off. "Go and worship something."

Clara backed only one step. "Are there aliens in this school?"

"Listen, it's lovely talking to you, but I've really got to get on. I'm a caretaker now, Minerva's probably got a lot of kids to tolerate, so…"

"Oh, I have to go too, don't I?" Minerva had just now gotten the jist of what it would be like being an art teacher.

"Doctor, is there an alien in this school?" Clara pointedly asked.

"Me!" Elias waved one tiny hand in the air.

"There you have the answer," the Doctor said passively. "Now, go. The walls need sponging and there's a sinister puddle."

Clara looked between the two in terrible fear. "Doctor, you can't do this. You cannot pass yourself off as a real person among actual people. Minerva could, but even there I have my doubts-"

"I resent that," Minerva frowned.

"You said you haven't lived like a human since your other companions had to deal with that cube crisis thing," Clara reasoned.

"We will be fine, Clara-"

"Okay. One question. And you will answer this question. Are the kids safe?"

"No. Nobody is safe," the Doctor answered with his usual bluntness. "But soon the answer will be yes, everybody is safe, if you let us get on. Now, pretend you don't know us. Stay out of our way. The less you know, the better. I'll explain it all later-"

Clara huffed and headed for the doors. She stopped by and looked back. "Next time, Elias has to pretend that too, you know."

Elias sensed her irritation and did what any other toddler would. He tossed his journal, meaning to hit her with it but it landed a short distance from him and his parents instead. "Boo, Ca-yah," he pouted.

"What'd you go and make my baby sad for?" Minerva frowned as well and went to Elias.

Clara rolled her eyes and walked out of the room.

~0~

Clara was truly trying to stay out of whatever her aliens were up to, but it was heavily difficult when they kept popping up in the wrong places. Minerva had already began leaving coursework that wasn't part of the curriculum established, and although her students were pretty damn happy they got to draw whatever they pleased, the head of the art department had another thing to say. And being who she was now, a woman with less toleration, Minerva snapped back and among her words were the fact that Mr. Burk was a selfish, egotistical man who had no sense of creativity whatsoever.

Liv had laughed until she fell to the floor while Clara tried to tell Mr. Burk that Minerva hadn't meant those words...until Minerva said that she did indeed mean those words.

And then Elias. The little boy was adorable, Clara was the first to admit, but cute did not substitute for the fact he was taking things that did not belong to him. Already several of her students had come into her class without their Jane Austen books with the excuse that the cute little toddler wanted their books and they didn't want to make him cry.

"How thoughtful of you," Clara eyed the small band of girls who were trying their best to look like they had done it just to please Elias and not because they hated the book.

And so, Clara had half her students sharing the needed book to learn for the day. She was on her toes waiting for the Doctor to make some sort of mess as well.

She then saw the Time Lord climbing up a ladder situated outside her open window. Sighing, she got up from her desk and motioned the student reading outloud to continue.

Clara pulled up a chair to be on the same eye level as the Doctor. "Can I help you, Mister Smith?"

The Doctor initially ignored her question while studying the boring human class. "Wrong."

Clara blinked. "I'm sorry?"

"On the board," he nodded. "Wrong. Wrong."

Clara glanced at the board where she had written a 1797 Jane Austen quote 'It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.'

She sighed. "Oh, no, no, no, no. You don't do this. You are the caretaker, this is not what you do."

"Just taking care," the Doctor shrugged.

"Not your area!" hissed Clara, but the Doctor went on like nothing.

"Jane Austen wrote Pride and Prejudice in 1796."

Clara cleared her throat and glanced back at her class who were all now staring at them with amused eyes. "This is Mister Smith, the _temporary_ caretaker, and he's a bit confused."

The Doctor shot her a look from behind. "Not in 1797, because she didn't have the time. She was so busy doing all-"

Clara groaned. "Oh, What? I suppose she was your bezzie mate, was she? Was Minerva jealous? Did you all go on holidays together where you then you got kidnapped by Boggons from space and then you all formed a band and met Buddy Holly?"

The Doctor blinked. "No, I just read the book. There's a bio at the back."

The class giggled behind.

"Get down," Clara ordered.

"Boggons?" The Doctor arched an eyebrow.

"Go!" Clara exclaimed and sighed when the bell rang. The Doctor was overtly confused what Clara was upset about but he went down nonetheless.

~0~

"Mine!" Elias snatched a ball right off the ground and made a run for it when the group of boys started shouting "hey!". Giggling, he plopped down on the ground beside his father who was working on a junction cabinet. He was having a distractful conversation with Danny and another man - who bore a striking similar appearance with his previous incarnation- named Adrian.

"Of course, Danny Pink here is your man, Mister Smith," Adrian was busy telling the Doctor. "Five years' military experience, sergeant, here and Afghan, so electrics, boilers, if you need a hand, give him a shout."

"I, I've helped Atif with a couple of things…" Danny tried to be modest.

"I'm sure I won't need you, Sergeant. Fully qualified," the Doctor returned to work but flinched when sparks flew out. "You best get back to your PE class."

"Don't you teach math?" Minerva stopped by behind the two humans, tilting her head at both of them.

"He does?" The Doctor blinked. "What, in emergencies?"

"No. I'm a maths teacher," Danny reiterated.

"Why do you says _maths_ plural?" Minerva questioned curiously. "What is it with the English and their plurals?"

Danny smiled at the woman. "It's just how we say it…"

"I know, but _why_?" Minerva moved over and took the ball Elias had been ignoring in favor of the small plants behind him. She whistled to the bored group of boys the ball had been stolen from and tossed it back to them.

"Mommy!" Elias turned around with a pout. "Mine!"

"You weren't even using it, Elias. Share, remember?"

"Boo, Mommy," with an even bigger pout, Elias scooted closer to the Doctor.

"Aren't you the art teacher that told off Mr. Burk?" Adrian suddenly inquired after he gotten a good look at Minerva. She smirked, indicating she was. "Good going, guy's a nutjob."

"That's exactly what I told him!" Minerva rolled her eyes. "But apparently that makes me rude."

The Doctor smirked and looked up from his work. "Well…"

" _Watch it_ or the next one that gets told off is going to be a caretaker," Minerva eyed him in warning.

One of the boys in the group with the returned ball accidentally threw the ball into a nearby window, thus shattering it. "Mohammed, put that down!" Adrian quickly rushed to the group.

"How does that work?" the Doctor suddenly turned to Danny, taking the man by surprise with the lack of transition. "What if the kids have questions?"

"About what?" Danny frowned.

"Maths."

"...I answer them? I'm a maths teacher."

"But he said you were a soldier," the Doctor pointed a languid finger in Adrian's direction.

"You're a soldier?" blinked Minerva. "Oh...oh no…" she knew what the Doctor must be thinking right about now.

"Yeah, I was a soldier-" Danny now eyed Minerva with the same confusion he had for the Doctor, "-but now I'm a maths teacher."

"But what about all the PE?" asked the Doctor.

"I don't teach PE. I'm _not_ a PE teacher," Danny hoped this would be the last time he had to clarify.

The Doctor looked him up and down before shaking his head. "Sorry, that seems very unlikely."

Clara, who had been hiding behind a watering can in order to eavesdrop, thought this was right about the moment she should step in lest the Doctor continue. "Er, excuse me, Mister Pink - I think class 9M4 are waiting."

"Yes, you better run along, Sergeant. That ball isn't going to kick itself, is it?" the Doctor gestured but Danny gave him another look.

"I, I'm not a PE teacher, I'm a maths teacher-"

"Nope, sorry," the Doctor cut in, "I can't retain that. I've tried. It's just not going in."

Danny decided he couldn't take this anymore and walked off. Elias began to tug on his father's pant leg and pointed at the ball the group of boys still held onto.

"We'll get you a _super_ ball," the Doctor promised as Clara moved closer to them.

"So, Pink? The name remind you of anything?" she curiously asked.

"That's it a weird name," Minerva remarked and looked to the side. "Then again...Clara Oswald-"

"Hey," frowned Clara in offence.

"Amelia Pond…"

"Oi," Liv popped in. "Can't defend herself, remember?"

Clara sighed. "No, I meant Colonel Orson Pink? Remember? The guy we met at the end of the universe."

"Oh yeah…" went Minerva first.

"Same name," agreed the Doctor, "but doesn't look anything like him though."

"Looks very like him," Clara apointed out.

"Does he? I don't know. Who remembers a PE teacher?"

"He's not a PE teacher," Liv reminded with a small laugh. "And how could you not remember?"

"Liv, I have an entire kingdom to remember about," Minerva shook her head. "Doctor over here has an even dustier head than mine. One human? I don't think so."

"You _are_ rather rude today," remarked the Doctor who then smirked after a minute. "I kind of like it."

Minerva smirked back.

"N-n-n-n-no," Clara wagged a finger at them. "Definitely _not_ at school - don't even think about it!"

"Ooooh…." Elias' eyes practically shined with interest as the Doctor pulled out a small gizmo with three green lights on it. "Daddy-" he tugged on the Doctor's pant leg again, "-mine?"

"Sorry, El, but we need this one," the Doctor stuck said device into the cabinet he was working on then promptly locked it up.

"Boo!" Elias said to both his parents, probably fed up with not getting what he thought was rightfully his.

He made to run off when Clara grabbed him and settled him on her hip. "You're not going back there," she shook her head at him. "And you're going to have to tell me where all the Jane Austen books you took are."

"Shhh," Elias covered his mouth with his hands and let a muffled giggle escape through.

"I'm never getting those books back, am I?" Clara sent a look to his parents.

"Clara?" they heard Adrian call. With Elias still clinging to her, she turned around. "Got this period free, yes?"

"Yes."

"Great. Do you think we could talk over the assignments we're supposed to leaving this week? I've got a little problem with one of the analysis…"

"Oh, yeah, sure," Clara agreed and moved to hand Elias to Minerva when the boy outright refused. He was still peeved at his parents.

"No, Ca-yah!" Elias purposely dug his fingers into her white blouse. "No!"

"Oh alright," Clara gave up with a small groan. "Lucky I have a free period and you're still pretty cute." She glanced back at Minerva and the Doctor for approval. "Alright? I'll have him back in about an hour." Clara would figure no one would ask why she was carrying the toddler around. Everyone wanted to take Elias around despite not knowing him.

The Doctor gave her a nod, figuring it was better this way so that he and Minerva could plant in the devices quicker.

"How rude," Minerva remarked after Clara and Adrian had left. "Our son turned us in for a _girl_."

"Uh, actually, I think he's just mad at you," the Doctor turned to her.

"My baby's mad at me," Minerva said partially annoyed. "He'd rather go with Clara and her boyfriend than me? His Mommy?"

"What? You think that was the mystery date Clara's been on with?" the Doctor suddenly looked after Clara and Adrian. "Really?"

"Hm," Minerva shrugged. "She's got good taste, I'll admit. But nothing like _mine_ …" she winked at the Doctor.

"Come on my dear art teacher-wife, we've got to set up," the Doctor took her hand and began leading her back into the school. "And in the meantime...you tell me who this Mr. Burk is who shouted at you…"

Minerva smirked as he gripped her hand. "Okay," she replied softly. She would love to see her husband - the Oncoming Storm - put that teacher in his place.

~ 0 ~

Between the two, they had placed the gizmos all over the school in different, secret areas that would surely help them later on in the night. Along the while, they saw many signs that read 'Ozzie loves the Squaddie' which really made them confused because what the hell was an Ozzie and a Squaddie? And why would children write that all over the place?

When it came time to go back to teaching, Minerva left the Doctor in the storage room - along with Elias who was brought back by Clara...with Adrian's pen that was now declared his.

While the Doctor attended to the readings, Elias had been sat on the floor with a blanket, Clara's previous journal opened and being scribbled with Adrian's pen. When the door opened up, Elias looked up to see a young black student come in.

"Hi!" he immediately greeted.

"Hello," the student, named Courtney, walked inside. "Where's your Dad?"

"Dere," Elias pointed his new pen at the TARDIS.

Courtney turned to the TARDIS with a big frown of confusion. "Oi. What are you doing? Are you in there?"

"Yes," Elias said distractedly as he continued to draw on the journal.

Courtney called louder for the Doctor. "There's been a spillage in Geography, I need some paper towels."

The Doctor emerged from the TARDIS wearing a frown himself. "Can't you read?"

Courtney blinked. "Course I can read. But read what?"

"The door," the Doctor pointed. "It says, 'Keep Out.'"

Courtney shook her head. "No, it says 'Go Away Human's'...plus some other scribbles…"

"Me!" Elias cheekily smiled and pointed to himself as the true author.

The Doctor walked over to the door and pulled the sign off to see it did say 'Go Away Humans' "Oh, so it does. Never lose your temper in the middle of a door sign." He had actually gone off on Mr. Burk like he said he would and then came back to the storage room to make the sign in case the man tried stopping by.

Absolutely no one yelled at his wife, period.

"What was you doing in there?" Courtney glanced back at the TARDIS. "What's that box?"

"The caretaker's box. Every caretaker has their own box," the Doctor left the sign on its place and headed back inside.

"It says Police…"

"Exactly, there's a policeman in there, in case of emergencies and children. Towels, there, g-g-go," the Doctor had handed Courtney a paper towel roll and began ushering her out the door.

"What was that green glow? There was a green glow coming from in there. What was it?"

"Asks more questions than Elias," the Doctor rolled his eyes. Thankfully, the bell rang and he used it as an aexcuse as he pushed her out into the corridor. "Listen, there's the bell. Off you go. Maybe stop by the art classroom - I hear there's a lovely art teacher right now."

"My Mommy!" Elias raised a free hand.

"Aren't you still mad at her?" the Doctor threw him a look which made Elias giggle.

"I'm telling the Headmaster," Courtney warned him.

"Oh, yes, fine. Well, cut along, you're running out of time," the Doctor shooed her off.

"For what?"

"Everything. Human beings have incredibly short life spans. Frankly, you should all be in a permanent state of panic. Tick tock, tick tock."

"You're weird," Courtney declared after a moment of studying him. "And your baby's cute. Are you and the art teacher together?"

"My Mommy, my Daddy - mine!" Elias had left his journal and came running towards the two. He wrapped his arms around the Doctor's legs, shooting Courtney a little threatening look. "Mine!"

Courtney smiled at the young boy, inwardly laughing at his concern for his parents. "Yeah, you can keep them. They're weird - the art teacher is a bit snarky-"

"Oi, that's my wife and you keep your mouth shut about her," the Doctor pointed. "Now get lost."

Courtney sighed and turned to leave just as Clara came in. "Hello, Miss. Love to the Squaddie."

Clara blinked at her, first of all surprised she was even there, and second of all because the sentence had taken her by susprise. "Sorry, what did you say? What was she doing in here?"

"Paper towels," the Doctor answered distractedly. "Now, I imagine you have many questions. Fire away. I won't answer any of them."

Clara stared at the Doctor who had taken Elias into his arms and was returning back to where the TARDIS was. "What were they like?" she asked suddenly, making the man glance her way.

"What were who like?"

"The others before me - Martha, Donna...the Ponds? Did they...did they let you get away with this kind of thing?"

"Course they did," Minerva strolled in, eliciting a very excited squeal from Elias.

"Mommy!" he pushed himself forwards in the Doctor's arms until he was passed onto his mother.

"Oh, so you're not angry with me anymore?" Minerva mused and planted a kiss on Elias' hair.

"I'm serious!" Clara called to them, then sighing deeper.

"Clara, what you're asking is completely irrelevant," Minerva dismissed the question.

"No, it's not. Because it's concerning my kids and my school. This school is in danger-"

"Well, it's lucky we're here, then," the Doctor smiled.

"From _you_ ," Clara clarified and struck a chord with both aliens.

" _Excuse you_ ," Minerva turned around angrily.

Clara sighed. "You wouldn't be here if there wasn't an alien threat nearby. Your strategy for dealing with it involves endangering this school."

"You think we would purposely endanger innocent kids in this school?" Minerva demanded. "I'm sorry, is that the sort of people you think we are? People with our own son?"

"I didn't mean it like that," Clara sighed, rubbing her forehead. "It's just...this is _my_ place. This is where I can be a regular human being instead of being a human with a half-dead-half-alive imaginary friend with aliens on the side. I should like to know what is going on here, that's it." The Doctor activated his screwdriver and revealed a green glowing globe. Clara looked up at it. "What's that?"

"It's a scanner. We're scanning," he replied.

"Scanning for what?"

"Any alien technology in this vicinity should show up."

"What kind of aliens are we talking about?" Liv appeared as the scanner displayed a four-legged machine that resembled an alien sitting on a wheelchair.

"A Skovox Blitzer. One of the deadliest killing machines ever created," the Doctor explained. "Probably homed in here because of artron emissions. You've had enough of them in this area over the years. There's enough explosive in its armory to take out the whole planet."

"Uh…" Clara blinked at them, "Then, oh I don't know, leave it alone?"

"And when has that ever worked out fine?" Minerva challenged. "Sooner or later it's going to pop out and then what's going to happen?"

"Boom," Elias said with wide eyes as if he were telling a story.

"And let's not forget that some military idiot will try to attack it," the Doctor muttered and turned off the display. "The world is full of PE teachers."

As he walked into the TARDIS, the rest followed him in. Clara dreaded her question. "So, your insanely dangerous plan is?"

The Doctor responded by holding up his wrist that held a digital wrist watch with a metal bracelet.

"A new watch?" Clara said, clearly unimpressed. "What? Did Elias take your old one too?"

"This is a very special watch," the Doctor promised and strapped it on. He pressed a button and disappeared.

Clara looked around, confused. "Doctor?"

"Oooooh," went Elias as he saw his father disappear. "Daddy? Daddy! Mine? Pease!?"

"Oh for the love of God," Minerva sighed in annoyance.

"He's invisible," Clara laughed for a moment. She was only used to Liv pulling that trick, but never the Doctor.

"I am invisible and I am incredible," they heard the Doctor announced from somewhere in the room. "It's simply a matter of reversing light waves. Hang on, I'm coming back."

Elias' eyes had yet to unwidened. "My turn?" He tapped his wrist.

"Are you kidding me? You go invisible we'll never be able to find you," Minerva playfully shook her head.

The Doctor ruffled the toddler's hair, promising him when he was older he'd definitely have a go. "So, I give the Blitzer a tiny whiff of non-threatening alien tech, I lead it back here, but I don't want it to scan me, hence invisible."

Clara's amusement failed again. "So you're, you're leading the thing here? To a school? My, my school?"

"Hang on Clara, I'm sure they're not thinking about doing it when the children are here," Liv assured.

"Course not," Minerva agreed. "The school happened to be the only suitably empty place in the area. We've set up a circle of time mines around the school. Chronodyne generators. Bit unstable but they should be able to suck the Blitzer l into a big old time vortex, billions of years into the future."

"It's dead easy," the Doctor said before glumly adding, "Tiny bit boring. I'll need a book and a sandwich. Oh, and a kiss wouldn't hurt," he made eyes on Minerva.

"Fine, what do you need me to do?" Clara asked.

"You're on babysitting duty," Minerva nodded down to Elias.

"Ca-yah's house!?" Elias beamed at the prospect. He had left the shiny bracelet he collected last week and wanted it back.

"I love Elias , I do, but I should be here…" Clara began to say when the Doctor cut her off.

"We don't physically need you here, Clara. We just want you to look after Elias for us.. This creature is highly dangerous and we don't want him anywhere near it."

"I mean if you really don't want to babysit you could always just go canoodle with your boyfriend," Minerva offered. "I'm sure Martha can look after him again."

"Y-y-you know who he was, then?" Clara blinked. Out of everything she certainly didn't expect that one.

"Reminded us of someone," Minerva hummed. "I must say, your taste is impeccable, but nowhere near mine."

Clara didn't quite understand what that meant but she wasn't going to ask further. "So, so you like him?"

"Yes, we like him very, very much. So go home and canoodle or something…"

Clara smiled and looked at Elias. "I'm sure he wouldn't mind me cancelling. You want to watch a movie, El?"

"Pocorn?" Elias questioned, meaning for 'popcorn'. It turned out he loved it.

"With extra butter," Clara promised.

"No extra butter," Minerva narrowed her eyes.

"Regular butter it is," Clara pointed and laughed. "I'll get him after school, then," she said before leaving the room.

~ 0 ~

Just as promised Clara stopped by the storage room to pick up Elias with the promise that he would get his popcorn...and her plastic pearl bracelet. It was the only way to actually get the kid out of the TARDIS. He was still mildly upset when he saw his father disappear into nothing and that he couldn't go.

"Alrightie, c'mon, El," Clara walked down an empty school hallway holding the toddler's hand. "What kind of movie do you want to watch, hm?"

"Boom!" Elias flapped his free hand in the air.

"What is with you and action movies?" Clara sent him an odd look down.

Liv laughed, walking on Elias' other side. "Have you _seen_ his parents?"

Clara rolled her eyes and started to think of action movies that wouldn't be inappropriate for Elias to see. Suddenly, she heard Elias gasp.

"Ca-yah! Ca-yah!" he urgently tugged on her hand he held.

Clara stopped and looked down at the boy again. "What is it, El?"

"Roger! Ca-yah, my Roger!" Elias exclaimed for his teddy bear he had forgotten inside the TARDIS.

Clara tilted her head, dreading having to walk all the way back to the storage room. "I'm sure Roger will be fine one night without you there."

"Nooooo, Ca-yah…" Elias began bending his knees in an effort to remain in the hallway after Clara tried walking. How could she even _think_ Roger could just stay behind? She had to be kidding. "Roger!"

"Elias, remember I bought you your own teddy bear to keep at my house so that you had toys there too?" Clara tried her best to get the toddler moving. "You can use that one."

"Nooo!" Elias shook his head, now beginning to jump in his place. "Roger! My Roger! I want Roger!"

"You might as well go get it, Clara," Liv said with a teasing smile. "You can forget about getting him to sleep without it."

Clara sighed and turned back in the direction they had walked in from. "Alright, fine, let's go get Roger."

"Yay!" Elias immediately became happy again and walked calmly alongside Clara.

~ 0 ~

"You have got to be kidding me," Minerva groaned as she left the TARDIS in the storeroom after seeing that many of the gizmos plastered around the school were suddenly offline. She was on her own hunt now, apparently, to find her husband, the Blitzter, and the responsible culprit for taking down the generators.

She heard sounds coming from the auditorium and turned that way, figuring it was probably where her husband was. Although she was going to have some problems finding him if he was still invisible. "Doctor!" she came running inside only to find her husband staring at the last of the trap - a ring of chairs with the generators on them - like something was wrong.

Because of course there _was_ something wrong.

"The generators are offline!" he huffed.

"Yeah, that's what I've been trying to figure out," Minerva sighed deeply, apparently more annoyed than seemingly fearful of the predicament they were going to find theirselves in.

"What are you doing here?" the Doctor turned to her, completely upset to find her not in the TARDIS where it was 99.9% more safe.

"Trying to find you, you id-"

But the Blitzer chose this moment to make an entrance, giving them both a fright. "Range one point four nine scan complete problem problem."

"Oh, now that can give a Dalek a run for its money," Minerva commented quietly, swallowing hard.

The Doctor carefully stepped in front of her with his hands raised. "Listen. I'm unarmed. We're peaceful. Don't you understand? We know that you shouldn't be on this planet but we can help you with that."

The blizter made no such action that indicated it acknowledged the Doctor's words. "Problem solution: destroy."

But then, the unexpected happened. Danny Pink walked in holding one of the generators in his hand. "I want a word with you two!"

"Oh - _you're_ the one who took the generators offline!" Minerva stepped around the Doctor, more than irritated. "Who gave you the right!?"

The Blitzer turned on Danny, the human more than stunned to find it there. "Problem solution: destroy.

It began to shoot but Danny turned out to be quicker and ducked, throwing himself to the floor. In the process he dropped the generator and slid into the circle of the chairs, flickering green. He then picked himself up and grabbed a nearby chair to use as a weapon against the Blitzer.

The Doctor hurried to the chairs and used the sonic, hoping it would still be enough to create the portal they had originally planned for. Soon as he did, the portal opened up and sucked in a nearby chair, and began to pull in the Blitzer as well.

"Temporal disrupt. Warning warning. Temporal failure!" cried the Blitzer as it was pulled forwards.

Unfortunately, with it went Danny.

"Oh, this is why you don't interefere!" Minerva quickly scrambled to get her way to the human and hold him. "And Doctor, hurry up!" she screamed.

The golden vortex suck in the Blitzer completely and was shut down in time as Minerva and Danny were halfway down as well. The Doctor spotted the gizmo brought in by Danny and moved over to pick it up.

Before Minerva could move forwards, they heard a distinct call for them.

"Mommy! Daddy!" and a second later, Elias came running into the auditorium clutching his teddy bear, Roger.

"Elias!" Clara ran in after him, quite out of a breath. The toddler had heard the commotion and bit Clara's hand to make a clean getaway. Clara had never been so terrified in her life as she tried catching up with the toddler who she was sure inherited the Doctor's speed and Minerva's agility.

" _Clara_ ," Minerva turned around angrily while Elias ran straight for the Doctor.

"Clara?" Danny blinked, prompting the brunette to do the same.

"Danny?"

"What are you doing here?" Danny looked between her and the toddler who'd come in, and was now sure they knew each other.

"Really, I think the question is what are _both_ of you doing here?" Minerva put her hands on her hips.

Danny frowned. "Well, I was checking up on him-" he chucked a thumb in the Doctor's direction, eliciting a deeper scowl from the older man in return. "He's been up to something, fiddling with the electric, but what the?" he gestured to the entire room as an example of the oddities presented. "But, no. What? Did you see that thing? Tell me you saw that thing."

"Well, who didn't, stupid," Minerva walked back to the Doctor who had been fiddling with the generator while trying to calm Elias' excitement down. "What's the report, Martian?"

"The generators weren't aligned properly," he sighed in annoyance. "Sergeant here-" he nodded to Danny, "-went out of his way to move one."

"But the chronodyne worked. It's gone," Clara weakly tried to make it all better.

"This isn't going to work out well," Liv sat on the auditorium stage, a mixture of amusement and worrisome for all her friends. She knew this was certainly not the way Clara wanted to have Danny and the aliens meet...but Liv also remembered she'd warned Clara something like this could happen and that she should just prepare for the inevitable.

"The vortex is going to open here in seventy four hours. About three days," the Doctor continued. "Three days to think of something new because now it knows what to expect. Now it has scanned us and it will kill us on sight, thanks to PE here."

"Clara, why are you talking to them like that?" Danny was now staring at Clara in disbelief. "Why are you using words like chronodyne? Was that thing a space thing? Oh. Oh, my God-" his eyes widened, "-you're from space. You're a spacewoman. You said you were from Blackpool."

Elias came back to Clara waving his teddy bear at her. "Ca-yah, hold pease!"

Clara clapped her hands on her cheeks, completely lost on how to fix any of this.

"Clara, you might as well come out with the truth here," Liv called, hoping she would heed the advice.

"Ca-yah," Elias whined her name, waving his teddy bear for her to grab. He wanted to go see what his parents were doing!

"Clara?" Danny still waited for some sort of explanation.

Clara blinked fast, trying to focus on getting a good excuse out of her.

"Ca-yah! Hold!" Elias called again, hopping to get her attention. Clara put her hands on her temple, eyes closing for a second. "Please!" Elias suddenly remembered that word was important when you wanted someone to do something for you. "Ca-yah, hold please-"

"Elias, _stop_!" Clara accidentally raised her voice from the frustration. Her eyes opened the moment she realized what she'd done and looked down at Elias who'd gone very quiet. His eyes blinked quick and his lip curved into a pout. Clara put her hands in front of her lips, now of course feeling incredibly guilty she'd snapped at the only innocent in the room. "I am _so_ sorry El-"

"Bye Ca-yah," Elias spat at her and ran to his mother where he could retreat in her arms.

"Before you make this any worse-" Minerva began after she picked up Elias who buried his head in her neck, "-can you explain why you have to explain to _him_?" she nodded to Danny.

"Yeah, and tell me why you have to explain to _her_ -" Danny mimicked Minerva's tone, "-about explaining to _me_."

"Don't mimic my wife, PE," the Doctor left the gizmo studying and walked towards the human.

"D-Doctor, what are you going to do?" Clara rushed to block the way to Danny.

"I'm going to hypnotise him. I'm going to erase his memory."

"No, Doctor, stop-"

"Tiny little brain, only take a moment-"

"He's my boyfriend!"

"What?" Minerva immediately said, glancing back at Liv for confirmation. Liv gave a nod.

"You said you met him already," Clara reminded the two.

The Doctor was now looking at Danny with a new sense of dislike. "Him?"

"Yes, him."

"No, he's not."

"Yes, he is."

"Yes, I am," Danny frowned. Why was Clara tolerating all this nonsense?

"Your word doesn't have much value right now," Minerva remarked. "Clara, I thought your boyfriend was the other one - what was his name? Adrian?"

"What?" now it was Clara's turn to have herself a shock. "No, not him! Why would it be him?"

"Why wouldn't it?" challenged Minerva.

"You wouldn't go out with a PE teacher," the Doctor said like it should have been logical. "It's a mistake. You've made a boyfriend error."

Danny sighed. "For the last time, I am _not_ a PE teacher. I am a maths teacher."

"You're a soldier," the Doctor spat before looking at Clara again. "Why would you go out with a soldier? Why not get a dog or a big plant?"

Liv slapped a hand to her head. "Doctor, for real? Big plant?"

"Because I love him!" Clara snapped at the Time Lord, once again getting frustrated. At least with him she could truly shout and not feel guilty about it.

"Clara, are you going to explain any of this? Who is this guy?" Danny asked wearily. "And them?"

"I wouldn't point at me," Minerva warned. She could feel the Doctor's dislike for the man and while she respected his thoughts, she couldn't help Clara was at fault for this as well.

Clara racked for the best way possible to explain it all. "Well, the Doctor and Minerva, they're...um…"

"Go on," the Doctor waited as did Danny.

"Yes, explain. Who are they? Why have you never mentioned them?"

"Because they're aliens," Clara sighed.

"Er, are you an alien?" Danny leaned back a bit.

"No, no," she shook her head. "I'm still from Blackpool. Minerva, the Doctor and I travel through time and space - with their son, Elias."

"Hmph!" they heard the little huff of said toddler. He was using his teddy bear to hide his face from her.

"You don't have to tell him about me, yet," Liv appeared beside Clara. "I think we should ease him in on that topic."

"How cute, he doesn't believe it," Minerva commented and watched the Doctor head back to the stage. He pulled the curtains to reveal the TARDIS on it.

"It's called a Tardis, but it's disguised as an old police phone box," Clara explained for Danny.

"It's bigger on the inside," the Doctor said and moved to the doors to get them open.

Danny slowly neared the stage to get a better look.

"And we travel the universe in it…"

Danny took that in and looked around where the alien had been. "And what about that thing? Did you bring that here?"

"No, why would we?" Minerva frowned.

"But you said it was coming back," Danny pointed at the Doctor.

"Yes, it is coming back, thanks to you," the Doctor shortly responded.

"This is a school. We have to evacuate, call the Army," Danny began to think of of.

The Doctor shut - or rather slammed - the TARDIS doors. "And that is the most dangerous thing right there."

"Clara, I'm not all for hypnotizing but maybe in this particular situation we should do it," Minerva said, eyeing Danny who seemed to be thinking of more ways to put them all in danger.

"But we need to get help. This is an emergency!"

"Look," the Doctor hopped off the stage, speaking shortly again, "take him away. Shut him up, shut him down. Up or down, it doesn't matter to me. We've got a lot of work to do. Again."

Clara bit her lip anxiously, looking at Minerva for a moment. The blonde woman seemed a lot more calm - and less upset - than the Doctor.

"We're going to be fine," she promised Clara.

"Am I just being ignored?" Danny frowned at them all.

"Get him out," Liv urged Clara with a small push from behind.

Clara nodded and hurried to get Danny moving for the doors. "Come on, Danny. It's all right, it's. Come on, it's all fine. You'll be okay. Let's er, get those legs moving. This can all be explained and everything will be fine."

"And when this is all over, you can finish the job," called the Doctor who came to stand beside Minerva.

Clara stopped by the threshold, letting Danny leave a little ahead. "How do you mean?"

"Well, you've explained us to him. You haven't explained him to _us_."

There was a rather sharp look in the Doctor's eyes that made Clara nervous again. Minerva felt bad for the woman, she of all people knew what it was like having to explain themselves for their chosen love. But she couldn't even get a word in with her Doctor after Danny left because the Doctor had went directly back inside the TARDIS to continue 'working'.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Minerva half-demanded from Liv when the TARDIS doors slammed shut again. "You knew who Danny Pink was, and you know how the Doctor felt-"

"It's not my story to tell," Liv raised her hands in defence. "Besides, how was I supposed to know that you thought Adrian was the boyfriend?"

Minerva sighed and looked to the side. "You realize of course this can't stay the way it is, right?"

"Yup," Liv crossed her arms. "Look, I've been with Clara her entire life, and she's never actually had a proper boyfriend before...Danny is someone she really cares about. It could be the love of her life. She was scared enough thinking how she could explain all this to Danny before, now she's outright terrified. Don't be so hard on her, please?"

" _I_ won't," Minerva could promise on that. "But, uh, my dear Martian's going to need a bit more time...perhaps centuries…"

"Clara doesn't have centuries," Liv shot down the sarcasm. "I mean it, the Doctor can't ruin this no matter what his personal beliefs are."

"Alright, alright," Minerva sighed as she devised a new plan. She doddled a bit before saying her next words. "Have Clara and the new boyfriend-"

"His name is Danny," Liv interjected.

"Fine, have Clara and Danny come by tomorrow to the TARDIS."

Liv sent her a grateful smile. "Thank you, Minerva."

Minerva could offer back a little smile, but after Liv popped out she released a repressed sigh. "Oh this should be fun," she turned back for the TARDIS.

~ 0 ~

Next afternoon, after school, Liv had told Clara what Minerva had asked and - without mentioning Liv - Clara persuaded Danny to come by again in order to set things straight. When Clara led Danny into the TARDIS they found the Doctor tinkering with some new device presumably for the Blitzer. Minerva was reading from a book on the jump chair while Elias was sitting on the floor with several lego blocks around him.

Clara cleared her throat to get their attention. The Doctor spared them a brief glance - that borderlined a glare - while Minerva closed her book to look up with a much kinder smile.

"Afternoon," she walked towards the two.

"Hey," Clara said and looked at the Doctor for any sort of response. It never came. "Hey, Elias," she added after a moment, thinking it would be better. She winced when a lego block hit her ankle. Elias was deeply frowning at her and was reaching for another block when Clara quickly stepped beside Minerva to avoid being hit.

"Elias put the block down," Minerva ordered without having to turn around. "Anyways, I'm glad you came back," she said to Danny.

"Are you?" Danny's eyes flickered to the silent Time Lord.

"Well I'm not going to lie and say we're ecstatic-" Minerva began in her now-typical tone when Liv popped in beside, invisible to Danny, and cleared her throat. Minerva stopped herself, sighed, and started again. "We were taken by surprise that Clara chose you…" but at that moment the Doctor decided to mutter like a child.

"A what now?" Danny called him out on it.

"A soldier," the Doctor said it louder.

"Doctor," Liv warned but the man ignored her.

"Why _is_ he here again?" the Doctor asked Minerva, looking directly at her like the others weren't even there.

"Because I invited him to get everything cleared up," Minerva responded.

"There is nothing to clear up, Minerva," the Doctor said, sounding like he was nearing a snap. "PE over here knows what he needs to know."

"I'm a soldier, guilty as charged," Danny spoke much in the same manner the Doctor had, "But you - you're an officer."

"I am not an officer!" the Doctor put down the new device and stalked towards them.

Danny snorted and looked at Clara. "I'm the one who carries you out of the fire. He's the one who lights it."

"HEY!" now Minerva had been angered as well. "I will not let you talk about my husband like that."

"Minerva!" Liv saw everything going to hell. If the blonde got mad, then it was game over because the Doctor was one layer angrier.

Minerva remembered Liv's words but her irritation was threatening to overcome it. How could a human ever say words like that about her husband? A person he's never even met, and much less know what the Doctor's had to face. Sucking in a deep breath, Minerva endeavored to start again. Clara was worriedly glancing from one person to the next, her incredible fear filling her big eyes. Minerva softened, now sympathetic to the woman.

"My husband doesn't like soldiers-" and before the Doctor could comment Minerva slapped a hand over his mouth, ignoring his wince, "-and that's exactly what you are. Reasons for that are because of the past, and that past is a terrible one that he hates to remember. I'm sure you have troubling memories from that past."

Danny didn't have to say a word to let Minerva know she was right. His fidgeting proved it.

"We can get along - perhaps not become best friends but at least have a cordial agreement. We all love Clara in this room…" Minerva glanced over her shoulder to Elias who was occasionally pouting at Clara, "...well, perhaps one of us a little less right now...but in general we do. We just want her to be okay. Can we agree on that?"

Danny glanced at Clara, the latter nervously smiling his way, and of course he had to nod. "Yeah…"

"Doctor," Minerva's warning tone indicated him to be very careful with his response as she lowered her hand from his mouth.

"Yeah, yeah," he swayed his head and turned back for the console.

"Then you can all go back to your respective tasks," Minerva clapped her hands together "Clara, I'd ask you to babysit but, uh…"

Clara made a face as they all looked back at the toddler. Elias was busy building something when he looked up to see everyone staring at him. His eyes met Clara and he immediately pouted again.

"Boo, Ca-yah," and he threw another block her way.

"I will work on my apology," Clara concluded with a small sigh as she and Danny turned to leave.

When the two had left the Doctor entered a state of grumbles, saying things here and there. Liv and Minerva looked at each other fairly amused.

"Something on your mind, dear?" Minerva called from her spot.

"No, no, no," the Doctor responded in pure sarcasm while he tinkered away with the device. "Nothing at all."

"What's in the box?" they heard the young student Courtney Woods ask. They turned around to see the student standing by the threshold, curiously looking in. "It's not really a policeman, is it?"

"Uh oh," went Liv, "that's not one of the good ones. Good luck with her," and she popped right out of there, leaving the aliens to deal with the human student.

Minerva turned around with an even more amused face from Liv's words. "I know you, you're the student _every_ teacher complains about."

"They say I'm a disruptive influence," Courtney shrugged lightly, acknowledging she knew what the teachers said behind her back. This however, did not seem to please Minerva.

Although the student didn't seem to care, Minerva was appalled. "Now who would tell you that? I don't think you are."

"You've only been my teacher for a day," Courtney remarked.

"Hi! Hi!" Elias came running towards Courtney holding a lego block in his hand. "Play? Pease?" Courtney smiled down at the boy. Elias was excited to have someone new in the TARDIS. Because he was still upset with Clara, he found he had no one else to play with.

"Is he really your son?" Courtney looked up at the alien pair.

"Why would you ask?" the Doctor finally looked up.

"Because, well…" Courtney pursed her lips as she tried finishing her sentence without actually finishing it. Instead, she switched subjects. "Is this really a spaceship?"

"Course it is," Minerva smiled. "It's a time machine too, but that's another story."

"For real?"

"For real."

"Can I go into space?"

Minerva laughed and glanced back at the Doctor. "I like her, can we keep her?"

"Yes!" Elias answered for him and wrapped his tiny arms around one of Courtney's legs.

"So can I?" Courtney anxiously waited for the answer.

"Tell you what," Minerva placed her hands on her hips, "We're in need of a babysitter right now. You think you can handle him?"

Courtney followed Minerva's gaze down to Elias. "You want me to babysit your son? You don't want me. I'm a disruptive influence, remember?"

"No you're not. I hate teachers who brand students like this," Minerva shook her head. "It's been done to me too. So how's about you babysit him, and if all goes well you can come on a trip."

' _Are you sure that's a good idea?'_ the Doctor's voice rang in Minerva's mind. ' _She's a child and we don't know her manners_.'

' _Precisely because she's a child she needs this more than ever,_ ' remarked Minerva, ' _Her teachers all know her by "disruptive influence", Martian, I know what that can do to a young mind. It's the same thing that happened to me as a human, remember? She_ needs _this_.'

The Doctor sighed and looked up from his device to speak to Courtney. "Don't give Elias any sugar before bed."

Courtney smiled and nodded her head fast. "Got it!"

"And don't touch the console," the Doctor warned again.

"You want me to babysit in here?" Courtney's eyes flickered to Minerva.

"Where else?" She mused back.

"Yay!" Elias cheered at his new babysitter and quickly grabbed one of her hands. "Let's go!"

Minerva chuckled and watched her son take the awestruck girl back to where his toy blocks were, babbling about how they were going to "play all day". Minerva then walked back to where the Doctor was quietly working at and started watching.

' _Leave it to my wife to be a supermum for all,'_ she heard in her mind after a moment of watching. He looked up with a smirk.

' _Please, I'd rather be Supergirl_ ,' she grinned back.

' _Shouldn't it be Wonder woman then?'_

' _There is nothing wrong with being called a girl, dear. I'm full of power regardless of my identity.'_

The Doctor chuckled quietly. "That you are," he spoke out loud. After a while of more work, he left the console to retrieve several things they would need for their trip.

Minerva took to her reading again while occasionally looking over to Elias and Courtney across her. Despite age differences, they both seemed to be enjoying themselves. Elias had not yet attempted to take anything from Courtney nor throw something at her. Very good sign, she thought.

"What's that?" she questioned after the Doctor returned holding a ghostbuster-look-alike backpack and a tool box.

"It's a tool box, darling, haven't you ever seen one?" the Doctor cluelessly replied, making her roll her eyes.

"Are you guys going to ghostbust?" Courtney, too, had seen the backpack and grown intrigued.

The Doctor now rolled his eyes but stopped when the monitor started beeping in alarm. Quickly checking it he realized the Blitzer was on its way back to them. "No, no, no. No! No, no, no, no, no!"

Minerva got a glimpse of his thoughts and panicked as well. "We gotta go!"

"Go where?" Courtney asked, standing up mildly worried.

"To stop the ghost," Minerva quickly answered and followed the Doctor out the door but returned to warn- "Stay inside no matter what!"

~0~

Clara knew she would have to once again explain to Danny as she abruptly left in the middle of a parent conference because Minerva and the Doctor had appeared by the entrance doors. With her came Danny who'd gotten worried over her sudden departure. He suspected she would once again be getting herself into danger. Once they were out in the playground, Clara demanded an explanation.

"What's happening?"

"Clara, the vortex is opening, now," Minerva began but was interrupted by Danny.

"But you said Thursday night-"

"PE, shut up," ordered the Doctor. "Clara, it'll scan the area. If it gets to parents' evening, it'll kill them all."

Danny's eyes widened in horror. "We've got to evacuate-"

"Shut up!" once again the Doctor went.

Clara was able to process fast despite the ongoing back and forth argument. "O-okay, what do we do then?"

"You and I are going to distract," Minerva pointed between them two. She carried with her the Doctor's sonic and handed it over to Clara. "I'm going to use my own ice powers and you'll use the Doctor's screwdriver-"

"Don't break it," the Doctor warned. Clara rolled her eyes and listened to further instructions. "Give it some squirts of helicon energy, setting number forty one. No more than three seconds each, random pulses. Distract it, then you lead it away from the hall, giving me two minutes."

Clara nodded. "Then what?"

"Head for the TARDIS, Elias and Courtney are already there-"

"Courtney?" Danny gaped. "As in Courtney Woods the dis-"

Minerva threatened him with a pointed finger in the face. "If I ever hear you or anyone else call her a disruptive influence I will strangle you." And after a moment, she raised another threatening finger at Clara. "Goes for you too, Clara."

"Hey," Clara was quick to frown.

"You teachers are always so quick to brand students who are just different," Minerva shook her head, seeing herself getting lost on the bigger problem of the moment. She promised not to let Clara (or Danny for that matter) forget this, no sir. "We have a plan, are you ready, Clara?"

"As I'll ever be," Clara shrugged casually, something Danny responded with dislike.

"But the gadget isn't ready yet," he said as a reminder, thinking it would at least stop Clara for another minute.

"We're implementing," Minerva said before nodding at Clara to get moving. Before leaving herself, she turned to the Doctor. "Don't die on me, Martian."

"Wouldn't dream of it," he responded and leaned forwards to whisper, "we still have that math moment to get back to, remember?"

Minerva's eyebrows rose with remembrance. "Ooh, we do. See you in a bit then," she planted a kiss on his lips then ran off with Clara.

"But you're using them like decoys," Danny stayed behind and moved to where Minerva had been.

"No, not like a decoy. As decoys," the Doctor first clarified then rudely added, "Don't they teach you anything at this stupid school?"

Danny shook his head, thinking the man completely mad. "Well, is there anything I can do?"

Surprise, surprise, the Doctor was once again responsive with rudeness and sarcasm. "Yes. Yes, and this is very, very important. Leave us alone!"

~ 0 ~

It didn't take long for Minerva and Clara to find the Blitzer roaming one of the hallways. As soon as it caught readings of the sonic in Clara's hands, it chased after her. Minerva tried to stay on the same path as Clara to at least hold the alien back somewhat with her ice. The slower it got, the better. Danny saw them running from the first floor and nearly had a heart attack when he saw his girlfriend - looking far too used to this - running with Minerva while actively dodging some shots from the Blitzer. Eventually, they made it back to the storage room where the Doctor was quickly trying to finish up the final piece of the gadget.

"Martian, you better be ready!" Minerva exclaimed as she and Clara came to a stop beside him, both equally out of breath.

"Twenty seconds," the Doctor said in haste.

"Destroy, destroy," they heard the Blitzer.

"We don't have twenty seconds!" Clara frantically said before they all had to duck when the Blitzer fired at them.

"You better do something!" Liv popped in, just as frantic as Clara.

Minerva continued firing her icy blasts at the Blitzer while Clara helped the Doctor put on the 'ghostbuster backpack.' He then used a microphone built into the backpack in order to communicate with the Blitzer. "Stop! Skovox Blitzer!"

The blitzer suddenly stopped, froze almost like it. "Awaiting orders."

Liv straightened up, tilting her head at it. "It...stopped…"

"Superior Skovox Artificer. Analyse stop analyse stop," the Doctor hurried on.

"Superior recognised. Pattern one one oh, Orders orders."

"Why's it listening to you?" both Liv and Clara asked at the same time.

"Listening to its superior. This is a rough copy. It thinks I'm its general," the Doctor smirked. "Initiate input. Commence shutdown protocol. No conflict. Conclusion?"

"Problem solution.

"Conclusion."

"Final input code missing. Emergency terminate. Initiate self-destruct in nine eight," and suddenly the Blitzer's eyes turned red.

"Oh great, tell me you didn't forget the final input code," Minerva turned back to the Doctor.

"Aah, I didn't forget it," but the man went straight to work on a keypad.

"Then why aren't you putting it right now?"

"Because I forgot the final input code!"

"Seven six five…"

"Doctor!" cried Clara and Liv.

"I need time!" argued the man, "Distract!"

With a groan, Minerva turned to the Blitzer again, her hands billowing in blue, icy smoke again. She tried covering the immediate area in ice to at least deter the Blitzer for a minute.

"Three two one…"

"Minerva, it's breaking through," Liv had switched positions and was now beside the Blitzer, unharmed as it failed to see her.

"Dammit!" Minerva thrust a hand forwards and covered it in a mountain of snow.

"Yes!" the Doctor cried when he gathered up the code. "Artificer Artificer. Stop. Confirm stop override final input code."

"Code accepted," the Blitzer had shaken off the snow around it but was now completely stuck. "Abort self-destruct. Orders accepted: Stop, stop, stop."

Clara laughed, her heartbeat slowly returning to normal. "Okay, that was...close...now what?" she asked after a moment, laugh gone in exchange for curiosity.

Liv popped in right beside her and for a moment they stared at each other as if they were thinking, and then both uttered in excitement, "Throw it into space!"

They heard a clearing of a throat and when the group, now four technically, looked to the threshold they saw Danny Pink there, looking at a cross of horror and deception. When his eyes landed on Liv beside Clara, confusion and a look of offence settled over his face.

"I forgot to make myself invisible," Liv scrunched her face.

~ 0 ~

As the Doctor and Minerva disposed of the Blitzer quite literally _into_ space, Minerva had kept her word with Courtney Woods and brought her along the TARDIS for one quick trip. Elias had taken such a strong liking to Courtney that he'd given her the bracelet he'd taken from Clara's apartment. Meanwhile he still referred to Clara as 'Boo, Ca-yah' and promptly pouted at her.

"So," Minerva said as she, the Doctor and Courtney stood under the TARDIS threshold, all gazing into the actual stars, "impressed yet, Courtney?"

"Actually, I'm feeling a bit ill," Courtney said, grasping the doorframe with her head a bit at a lull.

"Uh-oh!" Minerva quickly rushed back inside while the Doctor remained completely in the blue.

"Ah, it can be a bit overwhelming. But look. The Olveron Cluster. A million stars, a hundred million inhabited planets." He appreciated that the girl had taken such good care of Elias and hadn't reacted to the whole part of the aliens and the spaceship. Besides, he remembered Minerva's words about the young student and had to agree that Courtney was someone who reminded him of Minerva during her human years, so pushed and branded. That was no good for anyone, and if he had a chance to turn it around he would take it.

Courtney gagged and dashed inside, about to throw up right onto the floor when Minerva supplied a bucket. The Doctor winced as he heard the first blow and turned back.

"Supermum?" he looked at Minerva who was caring for the student.

"Supergirl," she winked.

~ 0 ~

On the same day, Clara had gone to Danny's for a well needed explanation on everything, and this time Liv was right with her. Clara cautiously sat down beside Danny on the couch, the man outright staring at Liv across them. Liv stood, leaning on one hip with her arms crossed.

"So...she's...dead...but...alive?" Danny tried to put it in simpler terms just to see if he had gotten it all. It was far too much information and things to process.

"I _am_ here, you know," Liv said, none amused. "You could just ask _me_ the question."

"Liv," Clara shushed her, making the blonde roll her eyes. She then looked back to Danny, anxiously waiting for his true response.

"I don't understand how...this can _be_ ," Danny closed his eyes for a moment and rubbed his forehead.

"I know it's complicated, and confusing - well, a lot confusing - but there's nothing to it-"

"No, Clara, there _is_ ," Danny lowered his hand from his face and met eyes with her. "First, you don't even tell me you're time traveling with aliens - and their son apparently - and now you're telling me you see dead people?"

"Well, Liv's not completely dead," Clara said weakly.

"I'm not," Liv agreed.

"But your body's been buried," Danny said as a reminder of what he'd been told by Clara.

"Yes, this-" Liv gestured to herself, "-is like a soul imprint of who I used to be. My body's dead but my soul lives on."

"For how long?"

"Well," Liv scratched her head as she thought, "before I met Clara I used to think I would be stuck in limbo for all eternity. Now that I have some of her living characteristics...I haven't really thought about that."

"Good question for Minerva and the Doctor, though," Clara mused. It was the first time they had to stop to think about this sort of thing.

Danny sighed. "Alright, well, I suppose you've been kinder…"

"I've been with Clara since she was five, I want her to be happy," Liv said, sharing a smile with Clara. "And that happens to be you. But I swear to God if you hurt her I will haunt you and your future generations to come."

"Liv," Clara made a cutting motion across her neck.

"Deal," Danny said nontheless then shifted to face Clara. "And now I want to tell you something. This Doctor, I may not know him personally but I know his kind. Men like him push you and make you stronger, till you're doing things you never thought you could. I saw you tonight. You did exactly what he told you. You weren't even scared. And you should have been."

"That's because I trust him," Clara said logically. "He's never let me down."

"But didn't you hear what she-" Danny nodded to Liv, "-said? About those Pond people...look at how they ended up-"

"That was an accident and Amelia's choice," Liv spoke up in irritation. "And my Amelia changed for the better so I will not have you negatively connotate her."

"Fine," Danny gave up. "But Clara, if he - or even that Minerva - push you too far, I want you to tell me, because I know what that's like. You'll tell me if that happens, yeah?"

"Yeah, it's a deal," Clara nodded.

"No. It's a _promise_ "

"Okay. I promise."

"And if you break that promise, Clara, we're finished."

Clara blinked. "Don't say that…"

"I'm saying it because if you don't tell me the truth, I can't help you. And I could never stand not being able to help you. We clear?"

Clara nodded again, thinking it was fair enough. "Yes, we are clear." But, she truly hoped it would never come to that.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Gotta say this was a particular troublesome episode for me to watch because of the way Danny & Clara each acted and even with Courtney. I don't know. It just seemed very ooc the way Clara acted for me but whatever, at least here I can make it better. But next chapter is a super important one because if we remember it's Kill the Moon and this is where things go down...

P.s did yall see what I did there with the Supergirl thing? *laughs in fandom language*

On another note, there are actually 5 chapters left in this story - because I'm letting you all know that I do _not_ intend on writing out Last Christmas - and there is a little announcement I'm going to be making at the end of the story (nothing bad though).

Pretty much it for now guys. Thanks for reading and maybe leave a thought here if you'd like? :)


	7. The Moon Experiment

"I'm just not sure this is a good thing to do," Clara worriedly followed Minerva around the console, speaking in hushed tones while Courtney Woods was being properly suited up into a bright, orange spacesuit by the Doctor. "I mean, she's a _student_!"

Minerva looked up, perplexed on what the problem was. "We've had students in the TARDIS before, Clara."

Clara sighed, shaking her head. "No, no, I meant an actual _child student_ in the TARDIS without her parents."

"Well, she's got the next best thing - you!" Minerva said, thinking it would be a compliment.

Clara still disagreed. "I just don't understand what is it with you and Courtney."

"She reminds me of me when I was a human, Clara. I thought we went over this. When I was a human in school I was pushed around and given these awful nicknames. I actually thought I was what people told me I was. I got my help in the end, but it took a _long_ time for it to sink in." Minerva looked over to the young student. "I'm going to give her the help I needed on time."

"Okay that's fine, but, could you please tone it down?" Clara asked, looking a bit urgent for such a silly topic. "You do know she took your psychic paper and used it to get stuff and go into places?"

But by the look on Minerva's face Clara knew they hadn't figured it out. "Is that where that went? I thought Elias had taken it as 'his' and forgotten where he put it. That reminds me - I found 3 of your Jane Austen books."

Clara frowned. "There were _ten_ copies missing."

"Better than nothing," Minerva patted Clara on the arm and moved for the others.

"Does that mean I can't make myself visible now?" Liv said, suddenly standing beside Clara. If Courtney really was coming with them for a trip, it meant Liv could only be seen to their little group and not Courtney for the duration of the trip. She wasn't quite used to that anymore.

Clara was too preoccupied worrying how this little trip would end. Courtney had been overtly excited at the prospect of getting another chance to see space. First time she'd gotten sick and she wasn't going to have that again. That was why she'd brought along a wristband for travel sickness that resembled vortex manipulators - which made both aliens for a moment think she'd somehow taken the only manipulator they had with them. And, for extra precautions, she'd brought in paper towels and spray as well.

Minerva had gotten a good laugh at that and assured the girl things would be better this time round.

"Where's Elias?" Courtney asked after she had been handed a space helmet by the Doctor. She was hoping to see the little boy again but had yet to do so.

"Oh he is grounded," Minerva declared with a big "hmph" at the end.

"Yeah, thanks," Clara huffed, crossing her arms, "it's going to be a lot harder getting back on his good side."

Ever since the incident with the Blitzer where Clara had unintentionally yelled at Elias, it had been very difficult for Clara to get the boy to forgive her. Usually with little kids one simply had to offer them ice cream or candy and they would forget all about it. Well, Elias was sure proving to Clara that he was not an ordinary human child. She tried their regular consecutive movie nights with popcorn - and some secret extra butter - as well as fun fairs the city had given at one point.

Elias would merely pout and run away from her.

Clara's last attempt had resulted in the young boy actually _biting_ her wrist when she tried to read him one of his favorite bedtime stories.

Clara was appalled. And scared. He had very strong teeth as it turned out.

And so, Elias learned that no matter how upset you are with someone you _do not_ bite them.

"He's currently at his first academic learning on the Monsoon with his grandfather," the Doctor explained.

"For a _two_ year old?" Courtney eyed the parents like they were deranged.

"He's not your average toddler," the Doctor promised, eliciting Clara to huff again.

"I'll say," she rubbed her wrist that still bore a pretty visible bite mark. Liv snickered beside her, and only reminded her of how Danny had also shared his brief laughter with her.

"Elias can retain much more information than your average human child," the Doctor explained to Courtney and was rather proud as he said it.

"And since he's half Time Lord and half Moontsay, we're hoping for even better development," Minerva added. Courtney nodded her head as if she understood, but she really didn't. She frankly didn't quite care.

~ 0 ~

After Minerva and Clara had gotten into spacesuits as well, the Doctor set their coordinates off for the Moon. They stepped out of the blue box to find themselves inside a storage room. However, this storage room happened to be full of weapon-looking objects all over the place and on wall shelves.

"This isn't the moon," Courtney remarked a bit disappointedly as they walked further.

"On a recycled space shuttle. 2049, judging by that prototype version of the Bennett oscillator," the Doctor nodded to said object.

They all remove their helmets and begin taking a better look.

"Where's the gravity coming from?" the Doctor asked.

Clara was still stuck on what the room held. "What are they?"

"They look like weapons," Liv said, now standing in front of such shelves.

"About a hundred nuclear bombs," Minerva said after examining them from her spot.

Suddenly, an alarm blared off and the Doctor hurried to the airlock window nearby. "Ah, we're on _our way_ to the moon!" he corrected himself. "Check that, we're about to crash into it!"

"Meaning hold on!" Minerva shouted and yanked Courtney and Clara to a nearby handle bar [cargo nets].

"I'll see what's going on!" they heard Liv say in the midst of the tumbulous landing. She disappeared afterwards.

When they halted, or rather crashed, the group had fallen to the floor. They were already trying to get up when the doors of the room slid open to reveal a crew of three led by a blonde middle-aged woman, Lundvik.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Lundvik was staring at the four in utter confusion. Last time they checked they hadn't brought along stowaways.

Liv popped in a couple feet from the group, invisible to all but the Doctor and Minerva and of course Clara. "So we crash landed, and they're the ones leading the expedition," she jerked a thumb their way.

The Doctor helped Minerva stand before beginning to make his questions because _oh_ he had questions. "Why have you got all these nuclear bombs?" He didn't seem to concerned of the weapons the others were holding.

Lundvik gave him a sharp look. "I'm not going to give you another chance."

"Yes, I'd ease the tone if I were you," Minerva spoke up, also looking less than concerned for the apparent weapons. "I think it goes unsaid we don't really care you're holding guns. I mean we all know you're not going to shoot us anyways."

"Oh really?" the other blonde challenges.

Minerva placed her hands on her hips. "Definitely. Unless you plan on bursting the entire room." Lundvik motioned to her crew to lower their weapons, missing Minerva's smirk. "Thank you, now that we're moving into much more important things, how's that gravity doing?"

"Finally!" the Doctor had of course noticed the lack of gravity in the area and had been bursting with questions.

"You know if Elias was here he'd be wanting to mimic you," Minerva said as they watched him make slow steps back and forwards. Suddenly, he started hopping in place.

"Gravity test!" he exclaimed.

Minerva shook her head and looked at the room again, feeling more and more uncomfortable with all the weapons there. "Why have you got all these nuclear bombs?"

But the Doctor interrupted Lundvik. "No, no, no. Easier question. What's wrong with my yo-yo?" And just like that, he pulled out a yellow yo-yo and let it drop.

Clara stared at them in confusion. "Doctor, it goes up and down."

"Exactly," Liv walked towards them, eyes also glued to the yo-yo.

And then the lightbulb went off in Clara's head. "Oh…"

"We should be bouncing about this cabin like little fluffy clouds. But we're not," the Doctor put away his yo-yo and looked to Lundvik. "What is the matter with the moon?"

The woman answered quite glumly and quietly. "Nobody knows."

Clara suspiciously looked at the Doctor. "Do you know what's wrong with the moon?"

"It's put on weight," the Doctor said to begin with.

"How can the moon put on weight?" asked Lundvik.

"Oh, lots of ways. Gravity bombs, axis alignment systems, planet shellers."

"So it's alien."

"That must be causing chaos on Earth," Minerva remarked. "I suppose the tides will be so high that they will drown whole cities?"

"Yeah…" once again Lundvik had answered very quietly.

"Dare I ask your solution?" Minerva tilted her head, half guessing now what these weapons were meant to to for them.

Lundvik didn't answer with words. She turned for a black case hanging on the wall beside the doors.

"If I had a nickel for every time the answer came to that I would be rich," Minerva sighed, adding later, " _Stupid_ rich."

Lundvik didn't care for her playfulness and merely challenged with, "That's what you do with aliens, isn't it? Blow them up?"

~0~

Although it was completely against protocols, Lundvik allowed the group of travelers to see what the damage on the moon was. They waited for the space shuttle door to open up and allow them onto the moon. First person out was Courtney.

She took in awed breaths as she began taking her first steps on the moon's surface. "Wow. Wow! One small thing for a thing. One enormous thing for a thingy thing."

Minerva's eyebrows rose. "We're going to need to work on your history," she remarked as they began walking out as well.

As they began heading for the modular settlement Lundvik had talked about, they got a better look at the deeper craters and cracks over the surface. Minerva was happy that Elias had not come with them for this was turning out to be more dangerous than usual. However that didn't stop Courtney from taking out her cellphone to capture pictures with.

"There was a mining survey, Mexicans. Something happened up here. Nobody knows what," Lundvik explained the origin of their situation. "That's when the trouble began back on Earth. High tide everywhere at once. The greatest natural disaster in history."

As they neared the building, they saw Liv was already there inspecting it. She greeted her traveling group with a very interesting question. "Since when do space buildings have cobwebs?"

"Cobwebs?" The question took Clara by surprise. Although, for anyone who couldn't see Liv it just sounded like she had seen the cobwebs herself.

"Henry, go back and prime the bombs," Lundvik commanded as they neared the open airlock of the building.

"Er, is there any instructions?" the man asked in return.

"There's a switch on each of them. The light goes red."

"They won't go off?"

"No, not till I fiddle with this thing," Lundvik gestured to the red case she held onto. Once Henry had left, Lundvik gestured for them to start going into the building.

"Is that the best you could get?" The Doctor asked, nodding to the clearly worried Henry who was walking off.

Lundvik shrugged, looking resigned. "Second-hand space shuttle, third-hand astronauts."

As they walked down the first entrance corridor they continued seeing many, and _many_ cobwebs. "

"How many people were here?" Minerva inquired as they slowly walked through.

"Four," answered Lundvik. "Minera Luna San Pedro. It was privately financed. They were doing a mineral survey up here."

"Any messages? Mayday? Sos?"

The second man of the crew, Duke, shook his head. "Pretty much all the satellites had been whacked out of orbit. They managed to send back some screams."

"Mm, and you thought coming up here to rescue them with your bombs would be the best solution?"

Duke detected the level of sarcasm in her tone but shook his head, keeping a serious tone. "No."

"They disappeared ten years ago," Lundvik revealed, shocking the entire travelers.

"Nobody came?" gawked the Doctor.

"There was no shuttle," Lundvik said.

"You had one."

"It was in a museum. They'd cut the back off it so kids could ride in it. We'd stopped going into space. Nobody cared. Not until-"

But Courtney's scream from the next room cut them off. They quickly ran off to see what was going on and found the student staring at a spacesuit hanging in a cocoon with millions of cobwebs around it.

Clara quickly yanked Courtney back and kept eyes on the spacesuit. "Oh, my God. Doctor, tell me there wasn't anyone inside that thing."

The Doctor was busy scanning it with the sonic, Minerva and Liv eyeing it as well. "I could, but it wouldn't make it true."

"I'll get some power back on," Duke said and hurried off.

Clara turned Courtney away from the sight. "Come on. Now, Courtney, come here. Don't look. You all right?"

Courtney gave a small nod. "I'm okay." She turned her head to see the Doctor and Minerva taking down the corpse off the wall.

Clara quickly turned her attention back."Hey. Look. Look at me. Look. It's all right if you're not."

"I'm fine," Courtney assured and then turned back to the two aliens. "What did it?"

"Maybe something trying to find out how you're put together," the Doctor said, then mumbled, "Or maybe how you tasted."

Courtney's eyes widened. "Do we have guns?"

"Not unless you brought some," Lundvik said back.

When the power came back and the lights turned off, the group took off their helmets. The Doctor hurried towards a computer console and read its information.

"They didn't find anything," he said after a moment.

"What?" Minerva walked up to them.

"The Mexicans. They didn't find any minerals on the moon at all. Nada."

"What do you mean 'nothing'?" Minerva's words rang in the room.

They heard Liv clear her throat and turned around to see the woman looking down at a bunch of moon pictures over the table. "What exactly were the purpose of these?" she asked.

The Doctor hurried over to take a look himself. "Lines of tectonic stress."

Lundvik moved over and saw the picture he was holding. "That's the Mare Fecunditatis. It's been there since the Apollo days. It's always been there."

"No, no, no. These are much, much bigger," the Doctor corrected as he picked up more photographs. "Sea of Tranquillity. Sea of Nectar. Sea of Ingenuity. Sea of Crises."

"Meaning?" Clara raised an eyebrow. The lights began to flicker after.

"Meaning, Clara, that the moon, this little planetoid that's been tagging along beside you for a hundred million years, which gives you light at night and seas to sail on, is in the process of falling to bits."

And just to show proof, the moon began to shake like an earthquake. Right after, they heard the sounds of little scuttles growing nearer.

"What the hell was that?" Courtney whipped her head towards the threshold of the room.

Lundvik tried contacting her nearest crew member in hopes of it being just a misunderstanding. "Duke, is that you?"

"I don't sound anything like that," came the unfortunate response.

"Can you try and get the lights back on?"

"That's what I'm doing."

The Doctor stuck his hand out to the woman and ordered, "Torch. Give me your torch. Whatever it is, it's in here." They all quieted down to hear claws nearing the room. The Doctor now used the torch to light the threshold where immediately he saw a smallish creature coming for them. "I think we've found your alien."

At that moment a large spider - a really _huge_ one - with luminous red knees sputtered towards them. At the mild lunge it did towards them, the Doctor ordered everyone back for the door.

"There's a door here!" Liv shout from behind. She was trying her hand at the door, but for the moment her hand wouldn't work.

"The door's locked!" Clara exclaimed after trying it herself.

"Move over!" Minerva commanded and practically pushed Clara out of the way. As she began to ice the handle bar - intending on later breaking it to pieces - they heard Duke coming in.

Immediately the spider forgot about the group and lunged onto Duke. The man fell on his back with the attached spider. At the same time the power came on and thus the locked door began to open.

"Hurry!" Minerva forgot about her powers and ushered everyone in. However, Courtney was unable to get through in time. The doors shut with her on the other side.

"Minerva!" She cried as she felt her entire body begin to rise from the floor. "Miss!"

Both called women pounded on the door for the student. Liv appeared in the room Courtney had gotten stuck in and was able to see the spider crawling away from the now dead Duke.

"It's coming this way, guys!" she called.

At the same moment, the power failed to come back. Courtney was now floating in midair and also saw the spider coming her way through the wall.

"It's killed him. It's coming in here!" She shouted. "Doctor, it's coming in here!"

"Liv do something!" Clara shouted back to the invisible woman, although Liv was already seemingly trying to do something. But her hands didn't make it around aNy object again, frustrating both women.

Minerva slapped a hand against the door's glass pane and iced it completely. She them slammed a hand through it and broke it into pieces. The Doctor gave her a stunned look for how ridiculous that was but he focused on Courtney first.

"Courtney, grab my yo-yo!" he pulled the yo-yo out and tossed one end to Courtney to rear her in.

Just as she grabbed it the gravity turned off and she fell flat on her stomach. Immediately the spider dropped with her and tried lunging on her, making her scream. She wasn't completely out of thoughts because she pulled out the cleaning spray she'd brought with her and sprayed it all on the spider, effectively killing it. When the others were able to come back in, they rushed to the girl.

"Courtney!" Clara took the girl and checked her for amy visible injuries.

"Kills ninety nine percent of all known germs," Courtney told the group rather bemused her own idea had worked against a _space_ spider.

"I'm loving it," Minerva eyes the spider menacingly.

"But why did I just fly?" Courtney asked. "This is nuts."

The Doctor took out the sonic to examine the remains of the dead spider. "Did you say germs? Oh, God, this is incredible."

"Look at the size of it," Minerva frowned. "It's the size of a badger."

"It's a prokaryotic unicellular life form, with non-chromosomal DNA."

"A _germ_?" Minerva raised an eyebrow. "I thought we were only playing here."

"You flew-" the Doctor pointed at Courtney, "-because that one point three billion tonnes shifted. It moved. It's an unstable mass."

Courtney blinked. She didn't understand anything the man had told her. She looked between Minerva and Clara, seeming far too overwhelmed. "I'm scared, Minerva."

Lundvik had gone to her member and saw there was nothing left of him. She turned away from him, processing his death. "He'd just had a grand-daughter. Elina. She was his first. He was my teacher. He taught me how to fly. We were both given the sack on the same day."

The Doctor silently acknowledged the death but outwards there was no moment to waste. "Which way to the Mare Fecunditatis?"

Courtney walked up to Minerva, pleading. "Please can I go home now? I'm really. I'm really sorry, but I'd like to go home."

Minerva looked over the girl to see Clara, and she knew they both decided to agree. "Okay, that's okay," Minerva placed a gloved hand on Courtney's shoulder. "You were very brave, and it's okay to want to go."

The whole point of the trip was to make Courtney feel special and that there was more than rules and classes like everyone always made it seem. Courtney had seen the world and decided it was not for her. That was completely fine.

The group returned to the shuttle where Minerva led Courtney into the TARDIS. "Now please, just stay away from the console, alright?" She warned the girl.

"You got any games?" Courtney walked around the console looking about for what she could do in the meantime.

"Mm, there should be some in media room. Just go into the corridor and she'll give you the room on the first door."

"Can I get reception up here?" Courtney asked just as Minerva was about to head back.

The blonde smiled. "Unlimited WiFi."

When she stepped back into the shuttle she spotted various things. First, and probably the most important, was Lundvik setting in the triggers on the nuclear devices. The second was that the Doctor and Clara were having some sort of disagreement. The third was Liv standing to the side running her temples, mumbling things under her breath. Minerva was quick to remember what that meant - or what she theorized it meant.

"Doctor ,we don't need to stay," Clara's voice overpowered the Doctor for a moment. "The moon doesn't break up."

"How do you know?" challenged the Doctor.

"Because I've been in the future…" Liv ended up saying, catching both's attention for a moment.

Minerva's eyes widened.

Clara shook her head, forgetting about it, and returned to the Doctor. "You know the moon is still there, right?"

"Maybe it isn't the moon. Maybe it's a hologram or a big painting, or a special effect," the Doctor shrugged. "Maybe it's a completely different moon."

"But you would know," Clara persisted, waiting for him to say it so that they could finally leave.

"I would?"

"If the moon fell to bits in 2049, somebody would've mentioned it. It would have come up in conversation. So it doesn't break up. So the world doesn't end. So, let's just get in the Tardis and go."

The Doctor looked at her like she was crazy. "Clara, there are some moments in time that I simply can't see. Little eye-blinks. They don't look the same as other things. They're not clear. They're fuzzy, they're grey. Little moments in which big things are decided. And this is one of them. Just now, I can't tell what happens to the moon, because whatever happens to the moon hasn't been decided yet. And it's going to be decided here and now. Which very much sounds as though it's up to us."

He didn't realize the cogs in his wife's mind were beginning to turn with a new idea.

"Neither of you are going anywhere," Lundvik's voice cut in to warn them all. "I've lost my crew. We were the last astronauts. This is the last shuttle, these are the last nuclear bombs. We're the last chance for Earth, and you're staying to help me."

"Decision made," the Doctor gestured for Clara to see.

"Yeah," Clara mumbled, none too happy about it.

~ 0 ~

A short time later, the group had left the shuttle to return to the Mexican module building.

"So what is killing the moon?" the Doctor asked the million-dollar question.

"How can the moon die, though?" Clara continued to disbelieve this was actually a real topic they were discussing.

"Everything dies sooner or later, Clara," Minerva said quietly, pretending to focus straight ahead.

"Well can we save it?" Lundvik inquired.

"Depends on what's killing it."

"There are the other three," she said as they neared a rather large crack on the surface revealing to have many cobwebs.

Liv crinkled her nose."Let me guess, there's more of them down there, isn't it? Like...like cockroaches."

"Oh my god is this an _infestation_?" Clara blinked. It was hard to think of their moon as something infested with... _bugs_. Even the thought sounded wrong to her.

The question made Lundvik think as well. She didn't feel any better when neither the Doctor nor Minerva answered the question. "Well, is it?"

"Well, I've only seen one of them," the Doctor reminded them as he neared the crack. "It would take an awful lot more to cause the moon to put on one point three billion tonnes." Just as he leaned in a bit too much, a large giant spider lunged out of the crack and landed on the Doctor.

"Doctor!" Minerva lost it and tried shooting some ice at it to no avail. Finally, she just went over and tried grabbing it off him.

Clara saw the tactic and attempted to help, despite how disgusted and terrified she was. Lundvik, too, added her help and the three women were able to get the spider off the Doctor. It scurried back into the large crack.

"Oh my God," Minerva pulled the Doctor up and encased him in a hug. "Don't do that again!"

"I will try, darling…" the Doctor responded, although he was already making eyes at the crack again.

"I thought maybe the germ spray would've worked…" Clara said, realizing she had carried it with her and hadn't even used it.

"It wouldn't have," Lundvik shot the idea down. "Vaccuum space?" she gestured to their surroundings.

"Hey," Liv said, peering inside the crack, "do you know what I remember? How many spiders would gather up in grandma's yard where there were these little corners. Remember Minerva? And then once we would pull it into the light they would all try and scurry away back into the darkness."

"Sunlight," Clara said almost automatic, once again catching Minerva's eye. "If they're germs. My nan says it's the best disinfectant there is."

The Doctor moved towards the crack, feeling Minerva's tensed hand as he purposely let it slip away. He did not want her anywhere that stupid crack. "Shine a light down there."

Lundvik shone her light down to the crack to reveal glowing red spiders below. "Where have they come from?" Lundvik asked in horror.

"Maybe they've been there all the time," the Doctor began to theorize. "It's warmish. They're multiplying, feeding, evolving."

They all backed up for a moment to consider what to do next, although the Doctor already had somewhat of an idea.

"Doctor, if the moon breaks up, it'll kill us all in about forty five minutes," Lundvik said, sounding snappish.

"I agree. Unless something else is going on." He whipped out the yo-yo again and let it fall into another nearby fissure, collecting then a _wet_ yo-yo.

Lundvik gasped. "There's no _water_ on the moon."

"We would know," Minerva blinked, shaking off that sudden memory of the last visit they had taken to a planet that apparently contained some sort of water liquid.

"It's not water. It's amniotic fluid," the Doctor said, putting away the yo-yo. "The stuff that life comes from. I've got to go down there."

Minerva's eyes widened at the statement. "Oh no you don't-"

"To the TARDIS all of you-" he snatched the germ spray from Clara's hand, completely ignoring Minerva's high refusals in the process.

"Martian don't you even _consider_ doing this or-"

"-I will be back-"

"-because I swear to God I will make you-"

But the Doctor plunged into the fissure before Minerva could finish the threat. For a moment, she stood there, stunned he'd actually gone through with it. And then she spoke up.

"That's it, I'm just going to kill him. Yup. Elias ceases to have a father today," she shook her head and turned away for the shuttle.

"Will he really be back?" Lundvik asked Clara as the two went to follow Minerva.

"For his own safety he better," Clara answered truthfully.

As the three remaining women made way back for the shuttle, Courtney communicated with them from the TARDIS with some very important information.

"I'm bored. When are you coming back?"

"We're on our way," Clara assured. "What you doing?"

"Putting some pictures on Tumblr."

Clara's eyes widened while Liv laughed beside her. "No! Courtney, don't put any photos on Tumblr!"

"My granny used to put things on Tumblr," Lundvik remarked, sounding mildly amused.

However, they were forced to stop as another 'moonquake' rumbled the ground underneath them. Afterwards, Lundvik was able to spot Henry - the last of the crew - on the ground. As they neared him they were able to see his helmet had been broken and that he was a skeleton now.

Horrified, Clara looked away and saw by chance the shuttle which was now situated on the opposite side of a ravine. "Was that where we landed? It looks so different."

Minerva and Lundvik looked over to see what Clara meant

"Uh oh, it's going down!" Liv shouted aa the shuttle tumbled into the widening ravine.

"Courtney!" Clara shouted as they lost sight of said shuttle.

"We going to have to take cover. We're running out of oxygen," Lundvik said.

"Today's the day, humankind!" the Doctor appeared behind the three women, apparently with a great discovery. Minerva turned around revealing a deep glare that made him question if he would survive moon _and_ her.

As they re-entered the module, Clara bombarded them with questions about the TARDIS and Courtney. "But where's the TARDIS? Is Courtney safe?"

"Clara she'll be fine because the TARDIS will keep her safe," Minerva assured, not the least bit concerned.

This, however, was not as easy going as they thought it would be. "Last time you said that, she turned up on the wrong side of the planet," Clara pointedly reminded.

"You two have never gotten on, have you?" the Doctor shook his head.

"Look, we need to know where Courtney is."

"Well don't you have her number, Clara?" Minerva inquired. "You could see for yourself that she is just fine."

"Of course I don't have her phone number," Clara sighed. "I didn't even know she was coming, remember?"

"Well, what about the school? Does the secretary have her number?" The Doctor now tried seeing Clara so worked up about it. He and Minerva knew for sure the girl was alright so long as she didn't step out of the TARDIS.

"I can't," sighed the woman again. "The secretary hates me. She thinks I gave her a packet of TENA Lady for Secret Santa."

"Did you?" asked Minerva.

"No!" Clara exclaimed, mildly offended. "Look. Courtney's posting stuff on Tumblr. Doesn't that know where you are?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes and gave in. He knew Clara would not stop until she could see for herself that Courtney was just fine. "Phone," he stuck a hand out to Clara. She planted her cellphone on his palm and watched him sonic it. In the middle of it, though, he saw some of the pictures Courtney had uploaded on Tumblr. "Oh, she can't post that. She can't put pictures of me online."

"Oh, let me see!" Minerva rushed over to see the pictures despite the grumbles her husband gave. "Hey, she could be a photographer, you know."

The Doctor shook his head and aimed his sonic at the wall, creating a miniature "facetime" on the wall. Courtney appeared on the screen looking mighty bored.

"Yeah?"

"You can't put pictures of me online," the Doctor scolded her.

Clara shook her head at his lack of priorities but was none surprised about it either. She moved forwards to the monitor. "Are you okay?"

"Er, I'm fine. What's up?" Courtney asked, seriously bored.

"Never mind that," Minerva waved the girl off and turned to her husband. "You better have something good or else you're regenerating."

The Doctor nodded his head fast. "Yes, yes!" he promised. "It's a rather big problem, actually."

Minerva narrowed her eyes. "Share it, now. And be quick about it."

"Well, I had a little hypothesis. The seismic activity, the surface breaking up, the variable mass, the increase in gravity, the _fluid_. I scanned what's down there." He walked over to a mobile console and sonicked it, creating a 3D projection of their moon. "The moon isn't breaking apart. Well, actually, it _is_ breaking apart, and rather quickly. We've got about an hour and a half. But that isn't the problem. It's not infested."

"What are they, then, those things?" asked Courtney still from the monitor on the wall.

"Bacteria. Tiny, tiny bacteria living on something very, very big. Something that weighs about one point three billion tonnes. Something that's living. Something growing."

"Growing?" both Clara and Liv said at the same time.

The Doctor sonicked the image again and revealed what laid within the moon. It appeared a large creature that resembled a baby Dragon with folded wings curled up into a fetal position.

Everyone was stunned.

" _That_ lives under the moon?" Courtney gaped.

"Not exactly…"

"What?"

"That doesn't live _under_ the moon. That _is_ the moon."

"What the hell are you talking about?" snapped Lundvik.

The Doctor was growing giddier by the second. "The moon isn't breaking apart. The moon is _hatching_."

"Huh?" Clara sent him an odd look.

"The moon's an egg," he grinned.

"Plot twist of the century," Minerva blinked and returned her gaze to the monitor.

"Has it, er, has it always been an egg?" Liv raised an eyebrow.

Without directly answering her, the Doctor responded with, "For a hundred million years or so this creature has just been growing. Just getting ready to be born."

"So the moon has never been the moon?" Clara couldn't wrap her mind around it.

"No, no, no, no. It's never been dead. It's just taking a long time to come alive!"

"Is it a chicken?" Courtney tried her hand at simplifying it.

"No!"

"Cos, for a chicken to have laid an egg that big -"

"Courtney, don't spoil the moment," the Doctor flatly said.

"Doctor, what is it?" Clara motioned him to get on with it.

"I think that it's unique. I think that's the only one of its kind in the universe. I think that is utterly beautiful."

It would have truly been, if it hadn't been...

"How do we kill it?" Lundvik's dark question created a very awkward silent moment.

Clara was the first to speak up, her face horrified yet confused as well. "Why'd you want to kill it?"

"It's a little baby," Courtney added, it made no sense.

Lundvik flat out ignored the two and looked only at the Doctor. "Doctor, how do we kill it?"

The Doctor as well could not believe what he was hearing. "Kill the moon?" As Lundvik nodded he switched off the hologram of the creature. "Kill the moon. Well, you have about a hundred of the best man-made nuclear weapons, if they still work. If that's what you want to do."

Clara didn't think she heard right. Was the Doctor actually entertaining the idea? It had to be a mistake. "Doctor, wait-"

"Will that do it?" Lundvik ensured by asking.

"A hundred nuclear bombs set off right where we are, right on top of a living, vulnerable creature? It'll never feel the sun on its back."

"And then what? Will the moon still break up? You said, you said we had an hour and a half?"

"Well, there'll be nothing to make it break up. There will be nothing trying to force its way out. The gravity of the little dead baby will pull all the pieces back together again. Of course, it won't be very pretty. You'd have an enormous corpse floating in the sky. You might have some very difficult conversations to have with your kids."

Although Lundvik didn't seem very happy wity the idea herself, she willed herself to remain cold and logic. "I don't have any kids."

Minerva was going to add her own horrified remarks but was caught up in the two very different reactions from Clara and Liv. Both women were sharing the exact same face, although Liv seemed to be struggling as if she had something else she wanted to express but just... _couldn't_.

It was...interesting...perhaps...just what she needed…

"Stop. Right, listen," Clara spoke over the two, "This is a, this is a life. I mean, this must be the biggest life in the universe."

"It's not even been born," Courtney added as another reason against it.

"It is _killing_ people. It is _destroying_ the Earth," Lundvik said urgently.

"You cannot blame a baby for kicking," Clara didn't think she would ever have to explain the logic of a baby, and much less that of an alien baby.

"Clara, maybe we should listen-" Liv had barely begin to say when Clara, astounded, interrupted her.

"Liv!?"

"What?" Lundvik made a face, reminding Clara that Liv was only seen by her.

Liv sighed. "I'm not agreeing with her, Clara. But as a person who's died I know what it feels like and I wouldn't want that for an entire planet. Maybe there's another way to keep the Moon...the way it's been."

Minerva's eyes flickered from woman to the next. It was phenomenal because the angrier Clara got, the more struggle Liv seemed to have with herself.

Suddenly, the Doctor could feel a bunch of memories partially invading his own mind, and he knew at once they were not _his_. He turned his head in Minerva's direction, a bit concerned for Minerva's well-being. Many of the memories weren't making sense. However, one common theme stood out: Clara and Liv. Liv and Clara. Liv here, Clara there. Clara here, Liv there. It was all a jumbled mess, truly.

' _Darling, what are you going on about?'_ He finally had to ask her.

Minerva hadn't even realized she'd been letting memories slip into his own mind. Blushing, she looked over to his questioning look. ' _Remember when you asked me what I wasn't telling you concerning Clara and Liv?'_ the Doctor nodded. ' _Well, this is it. This is the moment I've been waiting for. The perfect experiment. Will you help me, please?'_

' _How so?'_

' _We cannot make the decision, neither of us.'_

The Doctor tilted his head a bit, not quite understanding what one had to do with the other.

' _Please, just follow my lead. We have to see how Clara and Liv decide **together**.'_

' _I knew you were up to something_ ,' the Doctor accused with a lightish smirk. ' _Frankly, I'm offended you haven't included me.'_

' _Here's your start_.'

And sure enough, Courtney demanded she wanted to come back to the module.

"Ah, there's some DVDs on the blue book shelf. Just stick one into the Tardis console. That'll bring you to us," the Doctor instructed her then looked over to Minerva for the next step.

"Make sure you hang on, Courtney," Minerva warned first, "otherwise the Tardis will leave you behind."

Clara walked up to the two aliens. "So what do we do, then? Huh? What do we do?"

Minerva exchanged looks with the Doctor before both agreeing with, "Nothing."

Clara blinked, once again unsure if her ears had heard right. "I'm sorry...what?"

"Clara we said nothing," Minerva said, truly feigning indifference. "We can't help you. The Earth isn't our home. The moon's not our moon."

Clara was now giving her a look. "Okay, I know you tend to be more rude now but this is not the time!"

"Listen," the Doctor began, "there are moments in every civilisation's history in which the whole path of that civilisation is decided. The whole future path. Whatever future humanity might have depends upon the choice that is made right here and right now. Now, you've got the tools to kill it. You made them. You brought them up here all on your own, with your own ingenuity. You don't need a Time Lord nor a Moontsay. Kill it. Or let it live. We can't make this decision for you."

"Yeah, well, _I_ can't make it," Clara frowned. She could not believe they were about to play this game. Making decisions was something the Doctor loved, how could he be refusing to make one right now when it was so important?

"Well, there's two of you here-"

"Three," Minerva mumbled so that only Clara heard.

"A school teacher and an astronaut…?"

"Who's better qualified?"

"I don't know!" Clara shouted. "The President of America!?"

"Oh, take something off his plate," Minerva waved her off. "He makes far too many decisions anyway."

" _She,_ ," Lundvik corrected from her spot.

"Nice," Minerva smiled before continuing with Clara. "You've been into space, therefore for this one moment you are more qualified than the President of the United States is."

Clara couldn't believe this. Minerva was actually _serious_? She looked to the Doctor for some help, but even the man was refusing to give in. "Don't you two make this into some sort of lesson - don't you dare," she pointed a threatening, gloved finger at the two.

"This is no lesson," Minerva assured.

"It's really not," the Doctor nodded. "It's time to take the stabilizers off your bike. It's your moon, womankind. It's your choice."

"And you're just going to stand there?" Clara scoffed.

"Absolutely not," the Doctor said seconds before the TARDIS materialized across them.

Courtney stepped out of the TARDIS ready to take action. The Doctor took Minerva's hand and inched closer to the box.

"A teenager, an astronaut and a schoolteacher - among others," he eyed Liv, as did Minerva. Liv was just as confused as Clara was, but she didn't appear to be angry.

"Hang on a minute," Lundvik called for some order. "We can get in there, can't we?" she pointed to the blue box. "You can sort it out with that thing."

"Nope," Minerva popped the 'p' and shook her head. "Some decisions are too important not to make on your own." She and the Doctor started openly walking for the TARDIS, something Clara was still unsure she was seeing.

"Minerva? Doctor! Stop it! Come back here!"

But the two aliens walked into the TARDIS and shut it after them. Minutes later, it de-materialized completely.

The moment they were safely away - from Clara - the Doctor turned to Minerva expectantly.

"I think I deserve an explanation, Clever Girl."

Minerva nodded, thinking it fair. With a light sigh, she moved over to the console monitor and brought it to life, immediately pulling up her needed - secret - files. "Imagine that some regular human being who died unfairly was brought back to the world as a sentient soul. Now imagine that through the emotional powers of a Moontsay she was able to communicate with children and thus meets Clara."

The Doctor inched closer to her side, not quite understanding the relevancy. He knew how Clara and Liv came to be. "Yes, and?"

"Well, now imagine that those two managed to stay together beyond the typical childhood stage and somehow managed to create a whole cycle of living and dying together over and over...and over and _over_." Minerva pulled up various files of Clara's past lives - her echoes. Among them was the governess, Clara Oswin Oswald, and Oswin Oswald.

"This is what you've been doing this whole time?" the Doctor eyed her worriedly. "Searching for the past lives of Clara?"

"Not exactly - although I did find some interesting things," Minerva pointed at him. "Did you know that every single one of Clara's echoes had their imaginary friend die before them? I learned it through various testimonies thinking poor echo-Clara was crazy. She would say that her 'friend' was gone - that she wasn't there anymore."

"I don't mean to be impatient, but what exactly is your point, darling?"

Minerva sighed, of course he didn't see it. "I hypothesize that those previous echo-Claras and echo-Livs were somehow interrelated like a sort of life-line connection. But, because echo-Clara was technically the one alive she held the keys to life itself."

"Plausible," the Doctor gave a slight nod of his head. "But you can't exactly prove that…"

"Not with the echo-Claras I can't...but luckily we have the original Clara and Liv right here with us," Minerva clapped her hands together. "Bringing me to the true situation at hand. Haven't you noticed that ever since Clara and Liv entered your lifestream there's been moments where one of them says something they didn't mean to? Like they just blurted out what their mind said? Well I think that those thoughts are not _theirs_!"

"Then whose are they?" the Doctor made a face.

"Each other's," Minerva made a cross with her fingers, pointing to each direction on her side. "Sometimes, what Clara means to say or do, Liv does it instead. Like a reflex-" she snapped her fingers, "-or like an automated machine. Haven't you seen it, Martian?"

The Doctor could think of several moments where this sort of phenomenon did happen. They were brief, insignificant really, which is why it flew over his head. But of course Minerva would pick up on them.

"And so, my grand theory is, that because of so much living and dying together, Clara and Liv have developed a stronger connection than just sharing lives. If one of them believes in something, or wants to do something, strongly, chances are the second will feel the same about it even if she actually disagrees."

"I get that," the Doctor said, nodding his head. "I really do. And it's very interesting, I'll admit, but what does that have to do with any of this that's going on right now?"

"Because I've been waiting for the perfect moment to test it out. I needed to find a true topic, a horrible one if possible, that had the two of them on separate sides. I want to see if they're truly connected and to what extent. And, if it turns out to be true, then I want to know _who_ holds just a bit more power."

"For what true purpose?" the Doctor challenged. "Because all this, it sounds truly scientific, and I know you're curious, always so curious...but to resort to these sort of situations...there must be a powerful reason."

"I won't lie to you," Minerva said sadly, eyes falling for a moment. "If Liv does turn out to be connected to Clara, and that Clara holds the bigger power, that would mean Liv's life span would be limited to that of Clara's. When Clara dies…" she swallowed hard, "...Liv will cease to exist. For real now. But, if it turns out Liv holds the bigger power, then that would mean Clara's lifespan has just been extended indefinitely."

"There we go," the Doctor sighed. He reached out for her, tugging her into a hug, placing a kiss on her head.

"I don't want to lose my sister, Martian. It wouldn't be fair," Minerva said quietly. "I just got her back…"

"Then I suppose we should watch to see how it goes," the Doctor said, looking at the monitor."

~ 0 ~

With the nuclear bomb set for an hour, Clara and Liv raced to agree on some sort of level. Clara was already outraged that Minerva and the Doctor had actually left them on the moon to decide the Earth's fate. Now she had to deal with the fact Liv wasn't entirely for the idea of letting the 'baby' be born.

"I get it, you're scared," Clara was arguing in a hushed tone, making it sound like she was mumbling thoughts under her breath for Courtney and Lundvik, "but we have to think logically."

"I _am_ ," Liv frowned. "You don't get it because you're still living. I have seen people come and go, Clara. Imagine to see the entire planet go?"

"But we don't know that's what's going to happen," Clara insisted, still whispering.

"Do we?" challenged Liv. "I once saw Amelia make a terrible decision, taking a huge risk, that ended up being good nonetheless but it was a still a risk. Imagine if it goes wrong?"

"Imagine if it doesn't?" Clara softly responded. "Imagine we let a baby fly free?"

"My family - my descendants - are down on that Earth, Clara, as are yours." Liv said, and saw Clara stiffen - it was an idea she had not yet thought of. "I learned the hard way that life isn't fair."

Clara stared long and hard at her friend, wishing she could just change Liv's mind. At that moment, they heard a man's voice coming from the lit computer console. The signal was weak as it crackled.

"This is ground control-" the man, McKean began.

"Yeha, yeah," Lundvik cut him off. "I can tell by your haircut. How are things down there?"

"Pretty bad. Yeah. Pretty bad. Listen, we're patched into one of the TV satellites. We haven't got long. How are things up there?"

Clara's eyes widened as an idea rushed through her mind. She ran over to Lundvik and looked at the broadcasting. "Can we broadcast on this?"

"Who are you?" McKean eyed Clara, catching sight of Courtney afterwards.

"School trip. Can we broadcast on this?"

"Well, yes-"

"Then let's," Clara said and ushered the man to connect them to all broadcasting systems on the planet.

"What are you up to?" Liv asked her, but received no answer.

When Clara got 'go' she talked like she never talked before. "Hello, Earth. We have a terrible decision to make. It's an uncertain decision and we don't have a lot of time. We can kill this creature or we can let it live. We don't know what it's going to do, we don't know what's going to happen when it hatches. If it will hurt us, help us, or just leave us alone. We have to decide together. This is the last time we'll be able to speak to you, but you can send us a message. If you think we should kill the creature, turn your lights off. If you think we should take the chance, let it live, leave your lights on. We'll be able to see. Goodnight, Earth."

The transmission ended not a moment later.

"Was that okay?" Clara glanced at Courtney.

"Yeah," she smiled.

And so they began the wait. As instructed, lights that had been turned on became the signal of Earth's decision. But as time ticked by, more and more lights went out. Clara watched through a pair of binoculars how minute by minute lights continued going out. Her heart wrenched as she knew what decision was likely going to be made.

With only five minutes left, the planet went completely dark.

"Night, night," Courtney whispered, also heartbroken to see the unanimous decision the planet had made.

Clara, devastated, sighed. "Oh, Doctor, Minerva, where have you gone?"

Lundvik shook her head. "We can't risk it all just to be nice."

"Miss?" Courtney looked back to see Clara stepping to where Lundvik had placed the final bomb.

"Nine seconds…"

"You can't!" Courtney exclaimed.

"Sorry, girls," Lunsvik said truly. "See you on the other side."

Clara didn't want it. That was _her_ decision. She didn't want to see a beautiful, innocent creature die because of uncertainty. It shouldn't have to. It should live. It just should live.

"Two…"

Clara glanced out at the dark Earth, balling her fists. She would need to do it on her own, right? That was the test, after all. Could she make the decision? Hm, her feet weren't moving...and neither were her hands. _Move_.

"One..."

Liv lunged forwards and slapped a hand over the cut-out switch, thus aborting the detonation. Soon as she did she realized two things. One: that _she_ had actually done _that_. And two: that her hand had actually _touched_ the detonation. Talk about luck.

"What the-" Lundvik was outraged the bpmb had just "stopped working" like that. She hadn't seen Liv cut it off.

But Clara had. And she was just as stunned as Liv.

No one had time to think as the TARDIS materialized back in the room, with the Doctor at the door.

"One, two, three-" he had pointed at each women, "-into the Tardis."

"But what's going to happen?" Lundvik said as she was practically pushed forwards by Courtney.

"Let's go and have a look, shall we?" the Doctor ushered them all in. As he closed the door and hurried to the console where Minerva was already putting in coordinates for 2049 on Earth. However, she was completely silent.

She'd gotten the results.

"Bloody idiots. Bloody irresponsible idiots," Lundvik was muttering. "First the bpmb doesn't go off and then you decide to let let the moon-"

"Live?" Minerva looked up, frowning. "Shameful those are your thoughts. But please mind your language, there are children present here."

Lundvik ignored her and started snapping. "You should have left me there, let me die. I wanted to die up there with the universe in front of me, not being crushed to death on Earth."

"Nobody's going to die," Minerva rolled her eyes and set them where they needed to be. She and Doctor returned to the doors and allowed them out first.

They were now at a beach with a clear view of the day sky. The moon was in the middle of breaking apart as the baby unfolded it's wings.

"What's it doing?" Courtney shielded her eyes from the sun as she watched the creature come to life.

"It's feeling the sun on itself," the Doctor said as the creature began to fly away. "It's getting warm. The chick flies away and the eggshell disintegrates. Harmless."

Clara was overtly relieved, but once she laid eyes on the two aliens before her, she frowned. "Did you know?"

"It doesn't matter, Clara," Minerva said without looking back. "You all made your choice. _You_ made the choice."

"Humanity made another choice," Lundvik corrected. "So what happens now, then? Tell me what happens now."

The Doctor closed his eyes for a moment as he looked into the now altered timeline. "In the mid-twenty first century humankind starts creeping off into the stars, spreads its way through the galaxy to the very edges of the universe. And it endures till the end of time." He turned around, as did Minerva. "And it does all that because one day in the year 2049, when it had stopped thinking about going to the stars, something occurred that make it look up, not down. It looked out there into the blackness and it saw something beautiful, something wonderful, that for once it didn't want to destroy. And in that one moment, the whole course of history was changed."

Minerva smiled at Courtney, who seemed awed. "Not bad for a girl from Coal Hill School, huh?"

Courtney briefly smiled before catching sight of something in the sky. "Oh, my gosh. It laid a new egg." Everyone looked up and saw a brand new moon - or egg - right where the old one used to be. "It's beautiful. Doctor, it's beautiful."

"That's what we call a new moon," Minerva laughed.

"You can be the first woman on that," Courtney said to Lundvik, laughing.

"I think that somebody deserves a thank you," the Doctor said, seemingly saying it to Lundvik for Clara. In reality he had been saying it to Clara for Liv - the person who had actually stopped the worse from coming.

Lundvik, believing it was meant for her, glanced at Clara. "I suppose, thank you."

"Okay, Captain, you've got a whole new space programm to get together," Minerva clapped her hands. "Maybe beat the Brits to it, yeah? NASA is that way-" she jerked a thumb to the right." She then laid eyes on young Courtney. "And we'll take you back home right now. That was enough adventure for one day. Though I will need Clara to stick around a bit longer."

Clara was having quite an odd look on her face that both aliens couldn't decipher just yet. Without saying a word to either of them, Clara turned and led Courtney back into the TARDIS to get changed.

"Uh oh," they heard Liv mumble before disappearing.

~ 0 ~

"So can we go on another trip soon?" Courtney anxiously questioned Minerva before she truly had to go back to school.

Minerva was smiling at the young girl, pretty amused. "We'll set it up. But you have to promise to now try to do better at school because I know you can do it."

"Deal," Courtney nodded.

"Bye, bye," the now-retrieved Elias waved from his spot on the floor. He had gotten new building blocks from Elizabeth Smith and wouldn't let them go for anything.

Courtney waved back at the toddler. "Bye, Elias. Bye!" she waved at the two aliens and walked out of the TARDIS.

A moment later, Clara and Liv entered the console, the former changed back into her regular clothes again.

As the Doctor began making preparations for Clara's apartment, Clara determinedly strode over and slammed a hand over the lever before he could even reach for it. Startled, the Doctor blinked at the woman.

"Tell me what you knew," she outright demanded, her hand gripping the lever as if it were at fault for her problems.

"Clara, it doesn't mat-"

"Shut up!" Clara snapped, surprising Minerva who'd tried to explain.

"Hey," Liv tried to calm Clara, placing a hand on Clara's shoulder. "It's fine-"

"No it's not fine," Clara snapped at her as well. "It wasn't fine when we were back there making a decision we didn't have to!"

"We know it was a difficult situation for you," Minerva sighed. She should have foreseen this sort of conversation, she really should have. "But if you had to experience it in order for me-"

"Are you hearing yourself!?" Clara tapped her ears frantically. "What kind of person says something like that!? No - hold on, _you_ would say that," she pointed at the Doctor. "But you didn't," and that was what confused Clara the most. Minerva wasn't like this. She didn't do things like this. At least...at least she didn't used to. "Ever since you regenerated you have turned into a whole different person - a rude one, a snappy woman, nothing like the woman you used to be bef-"

"HEY!" the Doctor cut her off abruptly, moving to stand in-between the two women. No matter what absolutely no one talked to his wife like that. "You need to be quiet and just _listen_ -"

Clara laughed bitterly. "You're one to talk. All the talking and yet you didn't say anything when she made this decision to leave us behind."

"But that's just it, Clara, I didn't do it so that you figure it out," Minerva said, moving to stand around the Doctor. "It was for the bigger picture, a picture that involved you and Liv."

Hearing her name, the blonde woman stepped forwards, definitely more calm than Clara. "What? What was it?"

"Who cares!" Clara frantically exclaimed. "Nothing was worth the fear and the belittlement I felt today. This trick, this, this thing it was cheap and pathetic. It was _condescending_ -"

"Clara, I'm sorry," Minerva cut in. "I'm really sorry but you had to be there in order for me to be able to tell-"

"I didn't press that button. I nearly got it wrong," Clara snapped. "If it wasn't Liv who stepped in I would have made the wrong decision."

"But that's just it! _Liv_ did it! And she only did it because-"

"And all you did was tell me to take stabilizers off my bike. Don't you _ever_ tell me to do that! Honestly Minerva I don't even know who you are anymore," Clara looked away, taking a breath. "You changed for the worst. And I don't think I want to be around this anymore."

"Clara-"

"Clear off," Clara blurted, her eyes filling with angry tears. "Take your stupid box and go! And don't come back."

"Boo, Ca-yah!" Elias had been silently watching the whole ordeal, one hand still holding a green block.

"Elias, please not today," the brunette pointed at him. She didn't want to yell at him again, he was completely innocent after all.

Elias frowned and did what he usually did when he was upset. He chucked his green block at her, getting her ankle. "Go 'way! You go 'way!" he got up and started running up to his parents. He wrapped his small arms around Minerva's legs. "Mommy, okay?" he looked up to his mother.

Minerva had not said a word but her red, teary eyes were saying it all. Clara huffed and went the other way around the console, directly for the doors which she let slam behind her.

"Clara, c'mon!" Liv sprinted after the shut doors but stopped by the rails, sighing and glancing back. "Minerva? Care to give the explanation?"

But Minerva didn't want to talk anymore. Everything had turned out far worse than she could have imagined. She gently shook Elias off her legs and walked for the corridors.

"Doctor?" Liv tried again. It was safe to say they were the only two logical thinkers at the moment...or so she thought.

The Doctor picked Elias up from the floor and glowered at the remaining blonde in the room. "You get her to come back-" he pointed at the door, "-or not, I don't care. If she wants to hear what Minerva discovered about her and you, then so be it. But I won't have someone who speaks to my wife that way without so much of a clue of what was actually going on."

With that being said, he set the TARDIS into motioned then walked for the corridors as well.

"Great," Liv sighed deeply and disappeared.

There was some fixing to do now.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

I hate when someone argues with my OC :/ Like I wanna do everything to protect them? But this was inevitable unfortunately! What do you guys think about Minerva's little experiment? Good? Bad? (I think we know what Clara thought .-.)


	8. Return to the Orient Express

"Boy does this take me back," Minerva mused as she, the Doctor and Clara - all dressed for the 1920s era - moved for the TARDIS doors where the Orient Express (in space) was waiting on the other side. "How long has it been?"

The Doctor swayed his head. "1,096 years, give or take."

Minerva shot him a disbelieving look. "You counted?"

"What? A date with my then-human girlfriend on the Orient Express? How could I not." The Doctor countered with a half smirk.

Minerva smiled as he opened the door for her and Clara. "But it's upgraded, hasn't it?"

But the first thing Clara saw was a storage room full of - surprise - suitcases. "Wonderful."

Liv popped in and sent a warning look to Clara. It was because of Liv's argument that they were there in the first place, but even then Clara admitted she wanted to know what drove Minerva to do what she did on the Moon. Liv had said, that while she didn't know herself yet, she just knew that Minerva wasn't like this. Hell, the Doctor couldn't change that. Clara was still on the side that blamed the regeneration - a faulty regeneration she had declared. Liv promptly told Clara to shush, there was no such thing as a faulty regeneration. Clara could understand, on some level, that Liv would insist on them patching things up. Minerva was, after all, her sister. No matter what species or blood they were sisters and Liv didn't want to stop seeing Minerva. Thinking on that, Clara assured Liv she would never have to pick between them two.

Liv did not give up. And so, after many, many discussions - which included Danny sometimes - Clara relented and gave into _one_ more trip with Minerva and the Doctor. In that trip they would have a nice, civilized time where they would (hopefully) mend their errors. Deciding it was better to do this between themselves only, Minerva and the Doctor left Elias behind one more time.

The young toddler was _not_ happy.

"The real wonder is through here," the Doctor led the two women, Minerva by the hand, towards the door.

As they walked towards the main lounge of the train, Clara began to hair the faint noises of chattering and a beautiful voice singing. When the Doctor brought them in, it was impossible not to be taken with the place. The mood was a delicate, fancy 1920s filled with chandeliers, a bar on one side with a stage set at the end of the room where a young woman with dark hair was producing the beautiful song that filled the room. Although Clara could have done without the armed men standing guard.

Minerva, too, was delighted with the scene. "Oh, it's even more beautiful now than it was the last time we showed up."

The Doctor smiled at his wife and raised her hand to his lips. "Yet still nothing in comparison to you, darling."

With a raised eyebrow, Minerva mused on their high changes. "Mm, even when I'm older, then?"

"A couple of lines there don't do much to me," the Doctor thought was a genius thing to say. Minerva's eyes half-widened a bit as one of her hands touched her face.

Liv shook her head at the man's ignorance. She cast a quick glance at Clara to see how the woman was doing and saw Clara distantly staring off. "You're not going to even talk to them?" Liv asked quietly.

"I don't know what to say." Clara lied and Liv knew it. If the Doctor or Minerva had heard they would've known she was lying as well.

"I don't like this game," Liv vanished. Clara knew it was her tactic to get them all talking again.

"Oh, can we dance?" Minerva looked hopeful as she saw several of the guests slowly dancing to the singer's song.

The Doctor, on the other hand, looked bored. "No thanks."

Minerva glanced at him with disappointment. "What? But you used to. Don't you remember your silly giraffe dance?"

"I was an idiot," the Doctor flatly said. "There's no point in dancing. It's just moving your feet which I can do here."

Heavily disappointed, Minerva turned her attention somewhere else. A working maid passed by with a tray of champagne flutes. The Doctor took glasses and handed one to Clara and another to Minerva before taking one for himself.

"Last time I couldn't drink," Minerva mused as she continued thinking of their previous visit to the Orient Express.

"How times change," the Doctor remarked.

"Yes, they _have_ ," Clara said bitterly and made both aliens look at her. She gave them an expecting stare. They had brought her along to apparently talk and yet neither was doing anything but flirt with each other.

"If you want an apology I'm not giving one," Minerva spat to clarify. She didn't want Clara to make up scenarios of what was supposed to happen. Her words, however, only further angered the human.

"Then why am I here?" she made a gesture to the place.

"To ask the questions you wanted to know, clearly," Minerva reasoned logically. "I assume Liv told you that I made a discovery."

"Yeah, she did, the thing was...I didn't quite care," Clara put her flute down on the nearest table. "Minerva, you left me on the Moon to fend for myself because _you_ decided I was 'grown up'-" she made air quotation marks with her fingers, "-like I was your child."

"You are not my child," Minerva corrected instantly. "You are my friend. And if you think I purposely tried to hurt you then you don't know me at all."

"I really don't," Clara sighed. "You don't see it, Minerva, but you've changed. You are _not_ that ginger woman I first met. And I know the Doctor can see it too-" her eyes flickered to the Time Lord in question who opened his mouth to probably disagree with her but this time Clara was just too quick, "-but he's so in love with you that he can't see its bad sides. And maybe, to you-" she gestured to both aliens, "-it's not bad. But for me, for a _human_ , it's _so_ different."

Minerva couldn't help feel frustrated this was the accusation continuously thrown her way. Even if it was true, if she had changed so much, what could she do? It's not like she could control it. "Whatever you think this regeneration has caused I can assure you it had _nothing_ to do with what happened on the moon."

Clara took a long sigh and pause. She had gone from the anger phase to the acceptance stage. She couldn't change what happened, but she was fairly upset it _did_ happen. "I hated you," she began again, and the Doctor wondered if this was all that was going to come out of her mouth, "I hated you for weeks, Minerva. I didn't even think that was possible. Do you know what Liv once told me when I was a teenager? There was this horrible girl who purposely stuck gum in my hair and I was hell bent on revenge. And Liv, she told me that hatred is too strong an emotion to waste on someone that you don't like."

"Well…" Minerva looked away, stuck between frustration and anger. The Doctor was going to finally cut in because he was not going to have someone hurt his wife when she had done nothing wrong, but once again Clara proved to be quicker.

"I don't hate you Minerva. I could _never_ hate you." Clara paused again, shaking her head. "But I can't let this pass on like it never happened. Because it _did_. And I deserve better."

"If you believed that then you would let her explain," the Doctor sourly remarked. Clara shot him a look but then Liv appeared behind the two aliens, only visible to Clara for the first time since they met Minerva and the Doctor.

"He's so right," Liv said, a smirk tugging at the corner of her pink lips. "Can't exactly move on if you don't hear the reasons."

Clara sighed with acceptance, and resignation. "Yeah, alright, I guess you got me there. I do have questions, but...but I don't think I'm ready right now."

"That's fair," Minerva spoke quietly. "Shall we kill time until you do, then?" Clara nodded her head and watched as Liv disappeared again. Apparently, she was going to be forcing Clara to talk mostly with Minerva and the Doctor for the trip.

"Kill time? I'm just the man," the Doctor beamed at the chance.

Minerva smiled at him. "Of course you are."

"Come here," he led her and Clara to the closest window. "You'll want to catch the sights."

"Do you plan to take me to such sights?" Minerva nudged him, teasing of course but the Doctor took it very seriously.

"Of course. You know, we could try Thedion Four," he wiggled an eyebrow at her. "Remember the acid rain?"

"How could I not?" Minerva rolled her eyes. "You sure made our picnic quite interesting. I hate wearing gas masks!"

"That's a lie," a soft voice said to them from behind. The trio turned sideways to find a blonde woman staring at them rather distantly. "That's a lie, what you said. Thedion Four was destroyed thousands of years ago, so you two couldn't have been there."

The chief train guard rushed over and grabbed the woman's arm. "Miss Pitt, are you sure you wouldn't rather rest in your room?"

But the woman, Maise, kept her eyes glued to the two aliens. "Those two are liars," she accused.

The chief, Quell, discarded her statements like it hadn't mattered. "Perhaps you'd allow Mister Carlyle here to escort you back."

Another uniformed guard, Carlyle, approached them and started escorting Maise away. "It'll be all right, miss. Just come with me."

It was clear as water that the woman wasn't quite there, and so none of the trio took offence to her words.

Quell faced the group with an apology set. "Sorry about that. I suppose it's understandable in the circumstances. I don't believe we've been introduced. Captain Quell."

"I'm Minerva," the blonde stuck a hand to shake the man's. "This is Clara and my husband the Doctor."

Quell blinked and started to smile. "Ah, another one."

"Sorry? Another what?" went the Doctor.

"Well, we've got doctors and professors coming out of our ears on this trip. So, what are you a doctor of?"

The Doctor grinned. "Now, there's a question that's never asked often enough. Let's say intestinal parasites."

Quell's face said what everyone who'd ever met the Doctor said right in the beginning: what the hell? He gave in with a small nod. "I'm beginning to think Miss Pitt was right about you."

"What's wrong with her?" asked Clara. "Did something happen?"

Quell stared at the three who seemed to have the same clueless faces. "You mean...you really don't know?"

~ 0 ~

"Mummies on the Orient Express…" Minerva said out loud and took a drink of her champagne flute, "...funny, that wasn't the event the last time we were here."

The three were now walking down the hallway of bedrooms, residing for the night to _not_ investigate over the apparent Mummy problem.

"There's a body and there's a mummy. I mean, can you not just get on a train?" Clara wearily looked at the two. "Did a wizard put a curse on you about mini-breaks?"

The Doctor shrugged. "It might be nothing. Old ladies die all the time. It's practically their job description."

But Clara frowned. "And the monster?"

"Well, seen by no one except her, which suggests that it wasn't there. A dying brain, lack of oxygen, hallucinations. Anyway, people do just die sometimes. She was over a hundred years old."

"Says the two thousand year old man."

"You know, Clara, if I didn't know any better it sounds like you _want_ another adventure," Minerva glanced at the small brunette. "Didn't you say you wanted to take things slow?"

Clara blinked, of course she recalled her words. But it was a freaking Mummy! That was practically on her space-traveling bucket list! Liv appeared at the end of the hallway again, visible to Clara.

"Ask a question then, hm?" the blonde urged with arms crossed.

Clara took in a breath and turned to the two. "I want to ask my first question."

"Go for it," Minerva motioned.

"Did you plan the entire thing? From the trip to the Moon to the end?"

"No, I didn't. The Moon happening to be crumbling was truly a surprise to all of us. But then I realized that it was the perfect scenario I needed for you and Liv."

"So then you created the last bit, then?"

"Not exactly. We knew that the Moon would be fine in the end. I just wanted to see you and Liv acting on the decision."

Clara thought that was a load of crap to be honest. It made no sense and she was already getting mad again.

"Take a breather," Liv appeared once more, standing beside her. "Ask a question later."

Clara nodded, but to the aliens it just seemed like she was accepting Minerva's answers. "I think...I'm going to bed."

"Okay," Minerva said, thinking it was best to take things slow so that Clara could process the bits of information. She dreaded what Clara would think of when she told her and Liv the last bit.

"You're doing fine, darling," the Doctor pressed a kiss to her cheek after the two had gone to their own bedroom.

"Am I really?" Minerva sighed and drank down the last of her champagne.

"The _best_ ," the Doctor grabbed her hands and led them further inside the room. As he looked at her he saw her blue eyes were filled with nervousness. "Minerva…"

"Do you think what she says about me is true?" came her whisper of a question. "Have I...have I changed?"

"Minerva of course you haven't-"

"What if you can't see it?" she challenged. "What if Clara's right and I have changed but you can't see it?"

The Doctor let go of her hands, sighing deeply. "Okay," he ran a hand through his smaller hair, "maybe, you _have_ changed. You certainly aren't the Moontsay princess I met centuries ago. You've changed - you've evolved. You went from being this girl with no control of her life to having the reigns to an entire kingdom. And not only that, you learned to love yourself and to allow yourself to be loved." He cupped her face and smiled softly. "Those are the changes that I've seen."

Minerva felt her face warm at all those kind words. But then she realized that...they were _all_ _kind_ words. It was all positive changes. She took his hands off her face and kept them with hers. "And the bad changes? Are there any?" she looked him in the eyes expecting a true answer.

But of course the Doctor couldn't give an answer. This was his wife - the most perfect woman in the universe! What could possibly be bad about her?

"I think perhaps Clara's words ring some truth that neither of us can see," she said quietly. "And I believe that will be my question: what are my changes?"

"Minerva…"

"Doctor, it's impossible for a woman to _not_ change when she gets to live for hundreds of years. We are biased parties, therefore of course we'll never see the bad parts of each other."

As she moved to walk for the bed, the Doctor turned and reached for her again. "My darling, Kaeya, you're overthinking."

"Am I?"

"Yes. Once again you are letting other's words affect you in ways it shouldn't. Remember the last time we were here?"

"Em…"

"You were a human, deeply tormented by your then-mother's and cousin's words. I know Clara is never the same as those two, but her words are making you overthink again. Just take a breath, darling, and relax," the Doctor pressed a kiss to Minerva's cheek.

Minerva followed his instructions and took a breath in. "Well...maybe not all changes are bad," she began to think again but with a different perspective.

"There we go," the Doctor encouraged her to keep going.

"I mean, for starters we're married now…"

"For centuries," the Doctor was pleased to say and planted another kiss on her cheek.

"Aaaaand..." Minerva turned around and draped her arms over his shoulder, "...the best difference of all...we have a little mini-Martian running about."

A smile worked its way across the Doctor's face. "And still waiting for our Clever Baby Girl," he made sure to add. Minerva's face turned a light pink at the idea. "Elias would love to have a little sister, don't you think?"

"Oh, we'll just have to wait and see what happens," Minerva said honestly. The Doctor eagerly nodded and captured her lips in a kiss. After a moment, Minerva pulled away, lightly tapping her fingers along his shoulders. "Do you know what might be fun?"

"What?" the Doctor curiously wondered what she had in mind.

"The Mummy," she whispered, leaning closer as if someone in their bedroom would hear them.

"The Mummy?"

"Mhm. The Mummy. C'mon, Doctor, there's an invisible Mummy on the Orient Express? That sure wasn't here last time," Minerva smirked while she fixed his already loose bow-tie around his neck."Want to play detective with me?"

"A game with you? Sign me up," the Doctor grinned at her. "But I have to constantly get kisses to fuel my mind."

"Oh, really?" Minerva scoffed.

"Definitely. It's my prime fuel, if you haven't noticed?"

Minerva chuckled and planted another kiss, making it last for several minutes to give him a head start on that 'fuel necessity'. When she pulled away, she was proud to see how dazed her husband was because of her kiss. "Ready to go, dear?" she fixed his jacket for him.

"Y-yes…" the Doctor blinked rapidly. Minerva laughed and grabbed his hand to rush out the room.

~ 0 ~

Liv sat on top of the dresser in Clara's bedroom while watching the brunette pace back and forth. She had said she was going to sleep but she hadn't even changed yet. No, instead she called Danny then talked about the two aliens and the trip they brought her to. Then, after hanging up, Clara began to pace with thoughts tumbling out of her mouth every minute or so.

"If I was alive, I would be dizzy," Liv rolled her eyes. She placed a hand on her stomach and sighed. "Actually…"

"What am I doing?" Clara stopped to face her friend. "I'm not getting answers when I should be."

"Well, you don't ask them," Liv shrugged. "They're aliens, not seers. If you want an answer you have to ask. Reason you're not is because you're scared."

Clara's eyes widened with the accusation. "I-I am not!"

"Yeah you are. I've known you for your entire life so trust me on this. You're scared." Liv's lips curled into a smirk as Clara came to terms with it. "You're afraid of what Minerva apparently found out about us two."

"Well," Clara bit her lip, "wouldn't you be?"

"If it was bad Minerva would have told us," Liv reasoned. "Clearly, it's not. So clearly-" she jumped up from the dresser, "-you need to go and ask her everything you want to know."

Clara hesitated a glance at the door. Did she truly want to know what made Minerva do what she did on the moon? She was overly curious, that she would admit. But she would also admit she was scared. Last time the Doctor and Minerva knew something about her it turned out to be echoes of herself that lived and died specifically for the Doctor. What could it be this time around?

~0~

"Starting at the pit of the carriage," Minerva mused as she looked around the engine room.

The Doctor was across her sifting through various blueprints before moving to a computer. Next to it was an odd looking device that was being actively powered. "Oh, Sherlock?" he looked back at Minerva. "I think I found something."

With a chuckle, Minerva walked over. He took off the plastic wrapping around the device and scanned it with the screwdriver.

"Beautiful bit of kit, isn't it, sir?" a man's voice startled the two in their act. "The Excelsior Life Extender. It's like driving around in a portable hospital.'

Minerva looked back to find a man, no doubt one of the engineers, holding a heavy piece of metal. "Well, it didn't do Mrs Pitt much good, did it?"

The man, Perkins, gave her the right. "Got me there, ma'am. Certainly got me there. Maybe it malfunctioned."

But the Doctor's scoff indicated the theory was wrong. "Oh, I don't think so. The records show that the machine did everything it could to keep her alive."

"Yeah. And almost drained the battery doing it," Perkins commented, warning a suspicious look in return.

"What do you know?"

"Well, I know that when I find a man and a woman fiddling with a chair that someone died in, it's best to play my cards close to my chest."

"I like you," Minerva declared after a minute.

The Doctor remained a little more apprehensive and discreetly pulled her a bit back. "Well, I know that when I find a man loitering near a chair that someone died in, I do just the same."

Perkins smiled. "Perkins. Chief Engineer." He stuck a hand to shake with.

The Doctor shook his hand first. "The Doctor. Nosey Parker."

"Minerva," went the blonde next. "Sherlock, apparently."

Perkins chuckled. "Pleased to meet you, Doctor, Minerva." He looked around as if someone were to hear his next words. "Course, there's a rumor that someone or something else might be responsible."

"Isn't there always?" Minerva smirked and glanced at the Doctor.

"On a good day," the Doctor matched her smirk.

Minerva swayed her head back to Perkins. "Would you care to explain more to us, please?"

And indeed he did.

And after figuring things out, at least to some extent, they opted to get a little bit more information on the recent happenings in the train. In the main lounge, a middle-aged man was sat alone at one of the booths. He was reading a book peacefully when he heard noise across him.

Upon lowering his book, he found Minerva and the Doctor sitting across him.

"Interesting story," Minerva plucked the bool right from the man's hands and set it down on the table without so much of a glance at its cover, "But for another moment."

The man looked between the two questionably "I'm terribly sorry, I don't believe we've met."

The Doctor ignored him and leaned forwards. "What's the most interesting thing about the Foretold?"

But the man remained silent.

"C'mon," Minerva rolled her eyes. "We know that you know. The Foretold. Mythical mummy. Legend has it that if you see it, you're a dead man...or woman."

"Yes, I know what it is. You see, I happen to be…"

"Emil Moorhouse-" the Doctor finished for him, "-professor of alien mythology. I'm the Doctor. This is my wife, Minerva."

"Very pleased," Minerva smiled, "But we really do need to get on with business. The most interesting thing about the Foretold. Go."

The directness of the woman took Moorehouse back but he gathered the information that he knew. "Er, well, it would have to be the time limit given before it kills you. I can't think of another myth where it's so specific. How does it go?"

"I don't know, that's why I'm asking you," Minerva made a redundant gesture.

"Er, the number of evil twice over. They that bear the Foretold's stare have sixty six seconds to live."

The Doctor shook his head. "No, no, no. Nice try. Very atmospheric. But that's not it. Try again."

Moorehouse frowned. "A cynical man might say that you were trying to pump me for information."

"And what of it?" Minerva challenged, her voice serious for the first time. "We ask, you answer."

"The myth of the Foretold first appeared over five thousand years ago," the Doctor reviewed. "In some stories, there is a riddle or secret word that is supposed to make it stop. Some characters try to bargain with it, offer riches, confess sins. All to no avail."

Moorehouse watched the man cautiously as he reached into his jacket's pocket. The Doctor ended up pulling out a silver cigarette case full of jelly beans. Minerva smiled in amusement at the man, knowing for a moment he thought the Doctor would be taking out something bad.

"Well, you certainly know a little mythology," Moorehouse said after a moment, probably to cut through the silence.

"I know a lot. Because, from time to time, it turns out to be true," the Doctor shrugged, speaking from very true experience.

"But that's the great appeal, isn't it? Earth legends are such dry, dusty affairs, and always fiction-"

"I resent that," Minerva reached for ome of the Doctor's jelly beans and popped one into her mouth. "Humans are very creative to explain what they cannot understand." She flashed a warning look at the man. "Don't insult them again, please."

The Doctor amused stared at the man who was probably trying to figure out a way to get back on track again.

"Up here," Moorhouse began after a minute or two, "among the stars, anything is possible. That's why I chose this field, to be honest. Hoping one day I might meet a real monster."

"Isn't that everyone's dream?" the Doctor raised his eyebrows.

Minerva scoffed. "Definitely not my dream, dear."

The Doctor laughed. "It's part of my package deal, darling."

Minerva's lips stretched into a smile. "I got the memo." She glanced at Moorhouse then. "Well? Have you got an answer for the riddle? What's the most interesting thing about the Foretold?"

Moorhouse couldn't figure out what was the point in this conversation but he went ahead and answered in hopes of getting them to leave quicker. "Well, you can't run from it, that's for sure. There are accounts of people trying, but it never works. No matter how far you run, it's always right there behind you."

"Nope. Even colder," the Doctor flatly said.

With a frustrated sigh, Moorhouse gave up. "All right, I give up, you tell me."

"They always give up," Minerva laughed.

The Doctor hummed in agreement. "Mrs Pitt, the old woman who died."

"She died of old age. Nothing supernatural," Moorhouse shrugged.

"No. That's the answer," Minerva clarified.

"Her death?" Moorhouse frowned.

"No. The fact that you were here to witness it," the Doctor went ahead and corrected again. The heard a lpud noise coming from behind and quickly the Doctor got out of the booth, pulling Minerva with him. "Excuse us, Professor."

It didn't take much to figure out that yet another person had mysteriously perished in the train. This time it turned out to be a chef. The head, Quell, had made sure everything was hushed hushed as the body was transferred somewhere else. But that didn't stop the two alien detectives.

"I think we need to talk," the Doctor said the moment Quell had come out of the freezer room.

Quell made a beeline in the opposite direction of the hallway. "This matter does not concern the passengers."

"Oh good thing that's not what we are then," Minerva called louder and nudged the Doctor to get om with it.

He pulled out the old psychic paper for Quell to see. "We're your worst nightmares."

Quell read the paper and frowned. "Mystery shoppers. Oh, great."

Minerva dnstched it back from him to see for herself. "For real? That's it?" even she was disappointed.

The Doctor cleared his throat and motioned her to go with it. It was the only way they would get information after all. "  
We're mystery shoppers. We could do with extra pillows and I'm very disappointed with your breakfast bar."

"I'm more concerned about all the dying," Minerva crossed her arms, feigning indignation. "Definitely not kid-friendly. Can you imagine if we had brought along Elias?"

"He'd probably go in the search for the Mummy himself," the Doctor mused with slight amusement. Elias had inherited his adventurous trait but all the curiosity Elias had was Minerva's. Boy, they sure had created the perfect blend hadn't they?

~0~

Inside Quell's office, the man was subject to all sorts of questions regarding the late passengers. He tried diverting the questions to no avail and, to avoid further headaches and perhaps to make one more divert attempt, he went to pour some drinks for them.

"This is not exactly within your job description," Quell said after the Doctor had asked yet another question.

"Come on, Captain. Where would we all be if we all followed our job descriptions, hmm?" the Doctor pretended to think before quickly saying, "Good question. Glad you asked. In your case, you'd be doing something instead of climbing inside a bottle."

Quell took offence as he looked up from his drink. " I have followed the procedure for accidental death to the letter."

"No doubt about that, I'm sure," Minerva agreed with a small nod of her head. "Just as I'm sure you do enough of your job to avoid complaints."

Quell's eyes narrowed on the woman, but she didn't mind. "You don't know anything about me."

"I don't need to," Minerva jerked a thumb in the direction of a bravery award on the wall. "Thing over there mentions something being brave in battle. I'm to deduce you were wounded in battle so you had an honourable discharge." She leaned forwards on the desk and smiled knowingly. "And this is just a guess - well not really but I'm being polite - but I think you've had the fight knocked out of you. You expected this to be a cushy desk job where you could put your head down until retirement. Well, I'm sorry. As of today, that dream is over."

Quell's face was priceless and the Doctor could barely hold his laughter in. He really did like this version of his wife so much.

 _Oh_ , he felt a connection in his mind go off.

Minerva took no notice of him as she rose from her chair. "Darling, I grow tired of this. Sherlock would have already left this boring, two dimensional office." She grabbed one of the drinks meant for her and the Doctor, took a large swig, and walked out the door.

A bit fascinated looking, the Doctor followed after her.

"He was no help at all," Minerva remarked once they were out in the hallway. "I will never understand why people so desperately want to turn a blind eye on things that are so clearly there."

The Doctor only paid half attention to her. He was deep in thought thinking of previous memories in order to make his own conclusion.

"Perkins!" Minerva's surprised exclaim pulled the Doctor back to the moment.

Perkins was holding various rolls of paper and was equally surprised by the two's presence. "Er, passenger manifest, plan of the train and a list of stops for the past six months."

Minerva was delighted to hear he took initiative. "I like you even more!"

"Yes," the Doctor mumbled, not as happy as she was. "Quick work, Perkins. Maybe too quick."

Perkins rolled his eyes at the suspicion thrown his way. "Yes, sir. I'm obviously the mummy. Or perhaps I was already looking into this."

Minerva giggled and reached for the Doctor's hand. "And this is why _I'm_ Sherlock, dear."

The Doctor grumbled as she led the way. Once they collected Moorhouse from the lounge room, they relocated to the engine room where Perkins set out all the evidence of the recent mummy sightings. At the moment, they were looking at Mrs. Pitt - the mother or grandmother of Maisie - who was shouting at the invisible mummy to leave her alone.

"Sixty six seconds," the Doctor said once they finished the video. "It fits the myth. Did you see the lights flicker?"

"Yeah, the lights went in the kitchen as well just before the chef saw it," Perkins remarked.

"In all of the accounts, conventional weapons have no effect on the Foretold," Moorhouse reviewed. "It's immortal, unstoppable, unkillable."

Minerva frowned at him. "You're no help like this. It's going to be stopped tonight."

And that meant they would work furiously on it till they had the answers. They had recollected Moorhouse and brought him into the engine room along with Perkins. But midway through both men fell asleep, leaving both Minerva and the Doctor to continue the job.

"There you are," Liv's voice startled the two for a moment. At the same time, the blinds raised in the room, indicating it was 'morning' for the train. "Do you know I've been looking for you all night?"

"Could have just had Clara call, you know," Minerva then added in a low mumble, "Unless she's too mad to do even that."

"Hey-" Liv pointed at her, "-you're no white dove either, alright? Both of you messed up."

"No," this time it was the Doctor who spoke up. He had had enough of this back-and-forth between the women that didn't even include an explanation for Minerva's findings.

"Doctor…" Minerva raised her gaze from some papers in her hands, seeing a glimpse of what the man had in mind now.

"No, I've had it," the Doctor let the papers fall down on the table and walked straight up to Liv. "It's been 'Minerva this' or 'Minerva that' or how about 'Clara that, and she did this'. No more. You want an explanation?"

"Doctor-" Minerva walked for him but he wasn't giving in this time.

"Don't you yell at me!" Liv made a face at the Time Lord, indignitated this was somehow being turned on her. "I'm trying to help!"

"Help by doing what? Convincing Clara that she _should_ give my wife a chance to explain what involves you and Clara when in reality Minerva was the one who needed to decide if Clara deserved a chance."

"Doctor, she is your wife and I get that but she did wrong! Minerva-" Liv desperately looked at the blonde, "-you know that, right?"

The Doctor stepped to the side and blocked the two women from each other. "She was doing you a favor. She discovered you and Clara are _linked_ together. Your life forces are linked together."

"What…?" Liv blinked, her initial anger vanishing from her face.

"Tell her Minerva," the Doctor glanced back at her. "End this already and just tell them because I cannot stand another minute watching this."

Minerva knew, despite his anger, he was only doing what he thought was right. But she also understood where Liv was coming from. She acknowledged, now, that she had done wrong leaving Clara on the moon no matter what. She sighed and gave in, nodding her head. Liv gasped in return.

"I noticed for some time now that you and Clara shared some emotions, words even, that belonged to the other," she began to explain. "There were thoughts that I could see each of you struggled to accept because they weren't yours. So I started looking into it, and I theorized that one of you would have a bit more control over the other."

"What does...what does that mean?" Liv swallowed hard, looking from one alien to the next.

Minerva sighed. "One of you will always have the upperhand against the other. If you were ever faced with a terrible decision to make, despite being linked to each other, the one holding just a bit more power would influence the result."

Liv's eyes drifted to the side as she began to think. The Moon. She and Clara were left behind to make the decision of whether or not to kill the moon. In the end...Clara's decision went through to her.

"Clara has more power," Minerva said once she saw the realization hit Liv. "You hadn't decided what to do about the Moon - you were almost against it actually, but in the end…"

"I pushed the button," Liv whispered, everything suddenly making so much more sense. She covered her mouth and muffled a gasp. There were moments where she thought things that...weren't her thoughts. Nowadays, they were about Danny whom Clara was sure she loved by now. When they got into bickering, Liv could feel Clara's frustration, literally _feel_ it. Or when Clara was incredibly happy, Liv felt it.

"That's what Minerva found out," the Doctor said after a long moment of silence. "So could you please downgrade some of that senseless anger and maybe pass it on to Clara?"

"No!" Minerva exclaimed, coming to stand beside him urgently. "Liv, please don't tell Clara yet. Let me do it after this, please. I've done enough damage as it is."

"Yeah, don't think I could explain even if I tried," Liv admitted, dropping her hand from her mouth. She sighed, now truly understanding it all. She nearly forgotten why she was even looking for Minerva and the Doctor in the first place. "Clara got herself trapped in the storage room. She really needs your help."

"Of course," Minerva nodded and looked up at the Doctor.

"Yeah, alright," he motioned Liv to lead the way. Before they followed, he latched onto Minerva's hand to keep her back. "Minerva, you understand why I couldn't let this continue?" He knew the way he dropped the truth on Liv wasn't what she planned on but he just couldn't stand it anymore.

Minerva's look on him was unreadable, which really put him on edge. Would she now be upset with him?

 _Better start coming up with apologies_ , he thought to himself.

But instead of saying a verbal answer, Minerva cupped his face and surprised him with a kiss. When she pulled away, her lips were stretched into a smile.

"And I'm the impulsive one in this relationship?" she chuckled and pulled him to the hallways to catch up with Liv.

As soon as they arrived to the baggage room, they tried getting Clara - and apparently Maisie Pitt - out of there.

"Clara?" the Doctor hammered on the door that refused to open. "Is that you?"

They heard tapping on the other side of the door. "Yes. Yes. Hello. Can you hear us?"

The Doctor attempted using the sonic on the look but yelped when sparks shocked him. "Ow! Computer, can you open the door, please?"

"Call me Gus," went the automated computer, "I'm afraid this door can only be opened by executive order."

"Try it again," Minerva urged him to do it again.

The Doctor did just that but only received odd stutters from the sonic instead. "Oh. Now the stupid sonic…"

"What?" Clara called from the other side.

"Screwdriver's not working," the Doctor sighed.

"What?" they could practically hear Clara frowning on the other side. "What do you mean, it's not working? Why?"

The Doctor fiddled with the lock but no longer used the sonic. "I don't know. Some sort of a suppression field, I would guess. And it has to be a guess because, as I say, the stupid sonic screwdriver's not working."

Liv popped beside Minerva. "Can't you ice it or something?"

"Yeah, and then I could malfunction every system on the train and who wants that?" Minerva eyed the lock with formid. "What are you even donig in there?"

"Well, I was looking for you two…"

"And your first thought was to look for us in the baggage car?"

"Hey," Clara snapped. "You two said there was nothing to worry about and look where we are now."

"Let me remind you that you didn't want any part of this. So who are you?"

Clara sighed. "Look, look, please, can we just not do this now? I think we might not be alone in here. Also, there's a sarcophagus."

Immediately, the Doctor shared a look with Minerva, both alert. "What? Is it in there?" Minerva asked.

"Aah…" Clara hesitated for a moment. Liv, alarmed, disappeared and reappeared a minute later.

"It looks like it's opening!" Liv exclaimed.

"...turns out the sonic _is_ working," came Clara's fearful voice afterwards. "Just not on the door we need."

"Doctor…" Minerva looked around as the lights flickered.

"Clara, it's coming," the Doctor alerted the other woman and started working on the lock again.

Liv disappeared again, presumably to be with Clara.

"Maybe I should just ice it!" Minerva was about to push the Doctor aside when Clara hollered to them.

"It's okay. It's er, it's full of bubble wrap!"

"...but the lights?" the Doctor knew that meant _someone_ was going to die.

"Doctor, move away from the door," Quell's voice directed the two. He stood a couple inches from the two with two guards flanking behind him.

"Our friend's inside," Minerva tried arguing but the man cut her off rudely.

"Then they're in trouble, too. I spoke to Head Office. There are no mystery shoppers. You're not even on the passenger list."

"Clara-" the Doctor called as the two guards came for him and Minerva, "-we're gonna have to call you back. Stay out of - don't touch her!" he snapped as one guard came to handcuff Minerva.

"Ow!" the woman huffed and scowled at the guard.

"You're wasting time here," the Doctor warned Quell, allowing himself to be handcuffed.

"For all I know, you could be behind the killings," Quell thought himself smart making that conclusion.

"Oh, come on, Captain. How many people have to die before you stop looking the other way?"

Quell ordered the guards to take them with him. They walked down the hallway and in all that time the Doctor had been counting back regressively. When they reached the lounge room, they discovered a guard frantically shooting at thin air.

"What do you think you're doing, man?" Quell stepped forwards but quickly retracted when the man shot near them.

"Please, please! Stop! No!" the man fell backwards as, the Doctor presumed, the Mummy advanced.

"Get up, man. That's an order!" Quell continued to give and shout his 'orders'.

Minerva groaned from behind, icing her own handcuffs till they snapped into pieces. "It's the Mummy, Quell! Can't you see that?"

While he couldn't see the Mummy itself, he did witness yet another of his employees die from what appeared to be nothing but a crazy episode.

"It turns out it's three," Quell said hopelessly and glanced back at the two. "The amount of people that had to die before I stopped looking the other way."

Minerva reached for the Doctor's handcuffs and iced them to pieces.

"Why didn't you do that before?" he had to ask with a small frown.

"Because if I had the we would've turned into persecuted stowaways and these shoes-" Minerva raised one of her creamed-colored shoes, "-are not meant for running."

"Same as the others?" Perkins appeared at their side, eyes glued on the corpse which was now being moved away by other guards.

"Oh yes," Minerva sighed deeply.

"Ladies and gentlemen, could I have a moment of your time, please?" the Doctor addressed the still-stunned crowd in the room. "There's a monster on this train that can only be seen by those about to die. If you do see it, you will have exactly sixty six seconds left in which to live. But that isn't even the strangest thing. Do you know what is?"

No one said a thing except exchange glanced among them.

Minerva rolled her eyes. "Really? Alien biologists, mythologists, physicists and not one of you can figure it out?"

"My wife makes a point," the Doctor agreed with a sigh of his own. "If was putting together a team to analyse this thing, I'd pick you. And I think somebody has. Someone of immense power and influence has orchestrated this whole trip. Someone who I have no doubt is listening to us right now. So, are you going to step out from behind the curtain and give us our orders?"

Although there came no verbal answer, they realized they were in fact correct.

"The engines. They've stopped," Perkins said once the silence had turned eerie.

In a whiz, the facade of 1920s was exchanged for a high-tech laboratory in which the group was expected to work in.

"There we are," Minerva mused. "Because what use are a bunch of scientists without a lab?"

Perkin's eyes widened as a good number of people vanished into thin air. "Teleporter?"

"No. Hard light holograms," the Doctor corrected. "They were never really here. Fake passengers to make up the numbers.'

"Someone really put this together with great detail," Minerva expected now for the true culprit to step up.

Sure enough, the monitors switched from the apparent logo to a monocle and the familiar voice of 'Gus' rang through. "Good morning, everyone. Around the room you will find a variety of scientific equipment. Your goal is to ascertain the Foretold's true nature, probe for weaknesses with a view to capture, after which we will reverse engineer its abilities. Isn't this exciting?"

"Your definition of 'fun' varies, unfortunately," Minerva responded loudly. She had no doubt someone was having fun and watching them through the security cameras. "Come out and meet me so I can show you what mine looks like."

The Doctor reached for her closest hand and pleaded her with a silent look not to test this enemy. Without information on them, they couldn't know how they thought and operated. "Now you said capture, implying that you can't control this thing. And yet somehow you got it on board. How?"

Gus responded without so much of an acknowledgement towards Minerva's words. "There is an artefact, an ancient scroll. I have highlighted it for your convenience. For reasons currently unknown, the Foretold appears in the vicinity of this artefact."

A spotlight shines on the scroll that was indeed placed on the door at the end of the room.

"And kills at regular intervals," the Doctor said after a moment.

Quell scowled at the scroll and marched towards it. "Then just maybe we should throw this thing out in the airlock."

"No, don't!" Minerva called. Quell ignored her as well and reached for the scroll only to receive an electric shock in return. "I could have told you that was gonna happen."

"What if we say no?" Moorhouse challenged. "Down tools. Refuse to work."

"That is your choice, of course," Gus responded. "But it would be very upsetting were you all to die at the hands of the Foretold."

"So hurry up, before it kills you," Perkins got the message.

"But even if they agree to this, how are they supposed to study a creature that they can't even see?" the Doctor truthfully wondered. "We don't even know what the species is."

The lights flickered then, indicating the Mummy had chosen a new victim.

"Perkins, start the clock," Minerva instructed.

"Approximately one point eight metres tall," Moorhouse began, making all eyes land on him. His own were widened as he saw the creature dragging itself towards him. "Actually, seeing it in the flesh isn't nearly as rewarding as I thought it might be."

"What can you see? Details," Minerva tried to be cautious in not to sound rude that the man was about to die.

"Yes. Yes, of course, of course. Uh Well, it just looks like er, a man in bandages-"

"Oh hell no," Liv's voice momentarily distracted Minerva and the Doctor. She had appeared beside them and with alarmed eyes. "It's a _mummy_!"

"You can see it!?" Minerva looked at her sister in horror. Liv just nodded.

"What kind of bandages?" the Doctor pressed for information, now either from Moorhouse or Liv. "Old? New?"

"Old," Liv and Moorhouse answered together.

"Whole? Ragged?"

"Ragged. Falling off in places," Moorhouse said on his own, now beginning to back up as the Mummy grew closer. "I don't know what you want me to tell you."

"Listen to me! You can see this thing. We can't. Tell us what you can see. Even the smallest detail might help save the next one."

Moorhouse shot the Doctor an incredulous look. "The next one? You mean you can't save me?"

"Well, that is implied, isn't it? Yes, this is probably the end for you. But make it count. Details, please."

"Er, flesh. Some of it is visible…"

"Something's wrong…" Liv said quietly as she stared at the Mummy. Minerva didn't know whether this was a great help that Liv could see the Mummy, or something just complete horrific.

"Thirty seconds," Perkins warned them.

"Er, leathery. Ancient looking. Peat bog preserved..." Moorhouse struggled to string up details.

"Keep talking. Don't waste this chance!" the Doctor pushed for more.

"I want to bargain for my life," argued the former. "Some of the myths say if you, if you find the right word, if you make the right offer, then it lets you go."

"This isn't a myth," the Doctor snapped. "This is real. Forget your superstitions. Tell us what you can see."

"This is my life, my death. I'm going to fight for it how I want," Moorhouse declared and looked at the Mummy. "Er, I give you. My soul. I confess all sins!" but the Mummy continued coming for him. "I give you all my worldly goods. Only, please, please, please. No!" it did no good as the Mummy finally approached him and killed him.

The rest only saw the man clutch his head and drop to the ground.

Liv had not. She had seen it all how it happened.

"Liv?" Minerva reached a hand for the woman. Liv's eyes filled with tears and without a word she disappeared as well.

"We apologize for any distress you may have just experienced," began 'Gus' in a calm voice, "Grief counselling is available on request. On the bright side, I'm sure you've all collected a lot of data. Well done, everyone!" To show proof, one of the computers turned to life and split into 4 different video loops: each death the Mummy had caused.

"It's recording every death," Perkins couldn't think of anything more sinister than that

"Of course it is. That's why we're here. To study our own demise," the Doctor walked over to a handful of lab coats and started handing them out. "So let's get to work. Come on. Chop, chop."

"Doctor," Minerva grabbed his arm when he returned. "Liv _saw_ the Mummy."

"Yes, which is actually quite some help if she would cooperate," the Doctor looked around but Liv had yet to make a reappearance.

"Doctor!" Minerva exclaimed. "She saw a _Mummy_ _kill_ a man right in front of her."

"Yes, and she could tell us all about it if she were to come back!"

Minerva was an inch from smacking him for being so oblivious. "Listen, Martian, for someone who's already dead that is a big deal. In fact, I'm pretty sure if Clara had seen it she would've been in the same predicament."

The Doctor sighed. "Minerva, I can't do anything for Liv. I'm sorry. But _she_ can do a lot for us right now."

Minerva agreed there but even she saw that it wasn't going to be easy getting Liv back in the room.

~0~

Liv had chosen to appear to Clara and Maisie together, too overwhelmed to care who saw her. There she explained what she saw and what was going on at the moment. While Liv explained, Clara had become more confused due to the fact she had felt some of the same overwhelming fear Liv apparently had. Because she had yet to know the true reason, Clara discarded it as a close friendship bond.

"Clara?" Minerva's voice came through the comm. in the storage room. "Clara? Is Liv there?"

Clara glanced briefly at the stricken Liv before moving over to answer. "Yeah, she's here. Traumatized, but she's here."

Minerva sighed. "Liv, I'm so sorry for what you saw. But we really need you back here to help us-"

Liv had nearly lost it with that idea. "Are you mad? I'm not going back _there_!"

"But Liv, apart from the victim, you're the only one who can see this thing. You have to come back."

"Please terminate your call and return to work," Gus' voice cut into the conversation, not that either woman cared.

"For what? So that I can tell you how someone else died?" Liv couldn't believe Minerva was asking her to do that.

"Well, in moments, possibly-"

"Minerva!" Liv shouted. "How can you talk like that!?"

"Please terminate your call and return to work."

"See?" Clara sent her a knowing look. It was undeniable now that Minerva had changed.

"Clara, be quiet," Minerva had snapped. "Liv, you can help us stop more deaths-"

"I'm not going back," Liv left it final.

Clara saw Liv walking away and ventured to tell Minerva at least some information she and Maisie had found. She had a feeling this voice that kept interrupting would soon cut off their communication. "We have some paperwork. Passenger manifests from other ships. Maisie recognised a couple of the names. These are missing ships."

"So, we're not the first," the Doctor came to.

"Please terminate your call and return to work."

"I've got some progress reports. The Gloriana spent three days getting picked off by the Foretold. All died. Performance marked as poor. The Valiant Heart. Forty two crew, four died. Performance, promising."

"Please terminate the call and return to work."

This time, Quell stepped up to the two aliens in conversation with Clara. "I think you should do as it says." He made a gesture to the window where everyone now could see the entire catering staff, along with some equipment, floating in space, all dead.

"Clara, I have to go," the Doctor didn't think twice before hanging up.

"I'm sorry. I know that must have been distressing for you," Gus began, "But if you are disobedient again, I will decompress another area containing less valuable passengers."

"Such bravery for someone who doesn't even show their face," Minerva snapped but the Doctor once more urged her with a look to stop. They were not in control.

"Less valuable passengers…" he repeated quietly, "How does it choose?"

"Well, I'm assuming qualifications," Quell had overheard and thought to answer.

"No, no, no. Not the computer, the Foretold. How does it choose who to kill? We've assumed it's random. What if it's not?" the Doctor looked at the other waiting scientists. "I want full histories on all the victims. Medical, social, personal."

"Well done," Gus praised, not that the Doctor cared personally.

Later, with the information needed, they began to try and look for anything remotely important to the cause.

"Doesn't seem to be any pattern," Perkins sighed. "Their travel history, interests, health. It's all over the shop. Health?"

"I wouldn't be so quick to cast aside 'health'" Minerva remarked. "Mrs Pitt, the first victim. She was over a hundred years old. The frailest passenger on board."

"Oh but the next to go, the chef, was young and fit," Perkins pointed out. "It's random."

But Quell stiffened. "The chef was ill."

"What?" the Doctor stopped looking over the information.

"A rare blood disorder. Not contagious, but we kept it quiet."

"A health condition we can't see," Minerva mused. "What about the next one, the guard?"

"He wasn't ill as such, but he did have synthetic lungs implanted last year."

Perkins began to see the pattern and saw something important from a profile. "Professor Moorhouse. It seems he was physically fine but suffering from, here we are. Regular panic attacks after a car crash last year."

"It's picking off the weakest first. Sensing the illness somehow," the Doctor concluded. "The fake organs, even psychological issues. But this is good news, because it means we can work out who is next. I want the medical records of everybody alive who is still on board. If anyone's had as much as a cold, I want to know about it."

"You really think it can sense psychological issues?" Quell asked quietly.

"It seems so. Why?"

Quell glanced at Minerva who'd also fallen quiet. "When you said I'd lost the stomach for a fight, I wasn't wounded in battle as such, but. My unit was bombed. I was the sole survivor. Not a scratch on me. But post-traumatic stress. Nightmares. Still can't sleep without pills."

"Which means that you are probably next. Which is good to know," the Doctor shrugged.

Quell scowled. "Well, not for me!"

"Well, of course not for you, because you're going to die. But I mean for us, from a research point of view."

"You know, for a doctor, your bedside manner leaves-" Quell had begun to argue when the lights flickered.

"P-Perkins, start the clock," Minerva stuttered and moved closer to the Doctor.

"What can you see?" the Doctor got straight to work, missing the look on his wife's face.

"Almost feels out of focus. Gives me a headache just looking at it," Quell reached for his gun and took aim.

"Oh no, no, no, no. That didn't work before!"

"What kind of soldier would I be, dying with bullets in my gun?" Quell started shooting but instead hit a flask.

"Fifty seconds!" Perkins warned.

"Someone shut that man up!" Quell stopped shooting for a moment. "For the record, it didn't even flinch."

"Where is it now?" the Doctor quickly asked.

Quell's face said it all. "Approximately twenty feet in front of me and closing."

"Forty seconds!"

"Am I close?" The Doctor tried getting in front of him but, being turned in the wrong way, all Quell saw was the Mummy's outstretched fingers going through the Doctor's eyes.

"It's passing right through you, like a ghost!" Quell exclaimed in horror as the Mummy went right through the Doctor.

Perkins had switched from the counter, leaving Minerva at it, to read from a scanner. "It's not a hologram…"

"If you move, will it follow?" the Doctor inquired.

"Do you want me to move?" Quell repeated in a trembling voice. "Because I can certainly do that."

"Keep looking at it, but back off quick as you like-"

Quell didn't wait for further instructions and moved from his spot. He stopped with a loud gasp when he saw the Mummy was even closer to him now. "It's teleported away. It's behind me!"

"Twenty seconds," Minerva regretted to inform.

Quell seemed resigned to his date now. "I think this is it. Still, suppose it's not a bad way to go. Blood pumping, enemy at the gates and all that. And thank you, Doctor, for waking me up. It's reaching for me. Hands on my head…"

"Zero…" Minerva said right before Perkins screamed and died.

"Teleporter," the Doctor repeated the key word as he made a realization. "That means tech. Then sixty six seconds to do what?" he slowly turned back to the others. "Sixty six seconds. That seems very, very specific. Too specific for organic. So, what, more tech? What? More? A countdown clock? Something charging"

Perkins stared at the Time Lord in disbelief. "A man just died in front of us. Can we not just have a moment?"

"No. No, no, no. We can't do that. We can't mourn. People with guns to their heads, they cannot mourn. We do not have time to mourn," the Doctor wagged a finger at him. "Everybody, what takes sixty six seconds to charge up or to change state?" he might have as well listened to the crickets in that silence." Anyone? Am I surrounded by idiots? If only I could see this thing."

"Don't even joke about that," Minerva scolded him.

"I'm not joking about it. One minute with me and this thing, it would be over!"

"You know, Doctor, I can't tell if you're a genius or just incredibly arrogant," Perkins shook his head.

"On a good day, he's both," Minerva sighed and walked to her husband. "Can we have a word, please? Now."

"What is it, Minerva?" the Doctor tried not to sound impatient. Time was of the essence this time and he wasn't willing to spend it.

"Victims, Doctor, how are they chosen again?" the blonde got straight to the point. She wasn't willing to waste time either.

"Illnesses," the Doctor responded in confusion.

"Psychological ones?"

"Yes, why?"

"Doctor, are we forgetting which one of us-" Minerva pointed between them, "-suffered emotional trauma at one point?"

For a moment, the Doctor was silent.

Minerva sighed. "Do you think it's possible that it could...pick _me_?"

"Don't even joke," the Doctor immediately warned once he gathered himself.

"It's a possibility we cannot let slide if it happens," Minerva made a gesture with her hands and turned back for the tables, intending on getting to work again.

"But Minerva-"

"This is a deep tissue scan," she cut him off as she raised Perkin's scanner which had been used by Perkins on Quell's corpse, "It says he's been leached of almost all enegery on a cellular level. Well that would mean that the heart attack is just a side affect, no?"

"Oh, it's not just a mummy, it's a vampire," Perkins said with eyebrows raised. "Metaphorically speaking."

"But why take sixty six seconds to drain us?" Minerva questioned. "Why not just pounce?"

"Minerva, we weren't done," the Doctor sighed at her attempt to move on so casually when he could see in her eyes she was just as terrified as any other person thinking they could be the next victim.

"Yes we were. I just wanted to inform you," Minerva shot him a look. "I should like to be prepared."

"But Minerva-"

"No," Minerva said shakily. "Now, what takes time for it to be a minute?"

"Phase. Moving energy out of phase," Perkins replied after a moment. "That takes about a minute, doesn't it?"

"That's why only the victims can see it," the Doctor blinked. "It takes them out of phase so it can drain their energy."

"I like you again," Minerva smiled at Perkins. The scanner bleeped again and Minerva looked down to see the results of who the potential next victim was. "Well, it's a fifty-fifty I guess if we're going by logical terms. Miss Maisie Pitt is thought to be next but...since we haven't exactly counted neither the Doctor nor I, there's a 50% chance that it could pick me."

"It's not," the Doctor said angrily, taking the scanner from her.

"No time to be mad about this dear," Minerva warned. "Let's do what we do best: plans."

~ 0 ~

Clara could not believe her hears when she heard what the Doctor and Minerva wanted her to do. "Look, she's had a bad day, that's all." She glanced at Maisie who boredly sat on the crate.

"Clara, it doesn't care," the Doctor said. "Her bad day, her bereavement, her little breakdown puts her squarely in its cross hairs. She's next."

"Well, not technically for sure," Minerva reminded them. "But either way, it would be better if she was here."

"Okay, but, but we're in here and, if we stay in here, that thing can't-"

"This thing can teleport," Minerva cut her off. "Clara, just bring her here."

"Okay, so you can save her? Right?" Clara asked clearly for them.

"We don't know that, as we don't even know if she's properly next. But either way, it could be another chance to watch it in action."

Clara scowled. "Oh, but if it happens to be _you_ will the Doctor just idly watch it inaction?"

"Clara, this is no time for jokes," Liv appeared beside her. She herself wasn't happy they were being called back into that room but if Minerva and Maisie were in trouble she was not going to stand there.

"No, I mean it," Clara sighed. "If it happens to be Maisie will you just watch her get murdered?"

"Clara there is no time!" hissed the Doctor. "

"Even if I did, how exactly would I ever get her to agree to it?"

"Well, I don't know. Lie to her. Tell her I can save her. Whatever it takes to get her here."

And with that, the Doctor closed the comm. on her.

~ 0 ~

"They're coming," Liv appeared just beside the doors of the lounge room (which was now a lab).

Not a moment later did the doors open to reveal Clara and Maisie. This time, Maisie walked in with a put-together smile. "Hello, again. I'm Maisie," she stuck a hand to shake with the two aliens.

"Good for you," the Doctor passed her to get to Clara.

Clara was watching him rather agitated. "We passed the Tardis on the way here. Thought about getting inside, hiding, pulling the levers and hoping for the best. But we couldn't even get in. There was a force field around it."

"I laugh if you thought that would work," the Doctor gave her a look before noticing the one she had for him. "What?"

"How far are you willing to go to save her?" Clara asked, flickering her eyes to Minerva who was scanning Maisie. "You had me bring in Maisie just so that you could _hope_ that it picks her. And don't you dare deny it because I know that's true."

"She _is_ going to be next," the Doctor assured.

"Yes, after Minerva, or the other way around. I know you Doctor, I know _you_...so how far are you willing to go to save your wife?"

The Doctor was never one to hide his feelings when it came to Minerva. "For my wife? To hell and back."

Clara was not the least bit surprised. "That's the problem," she began. "You're both willing to do things that you _shouldn't_. I'm sorry, but the world does not revolve around you and your family. There are others and you shouldn't treat them like disposables. Is that how you would treat me if the situation changed?"

The Doctor gave her a look as she asked the question. But before he could answer, they heard someone gasp behind then at the same time the light flicker.

Maise Pitt pointed a shaking finger at the Mummy. The Doctor whirled around and was unashamedly relieved to see his wife was unable to spot the Mummy.

"Do we start the clock?" Perkins asked the Time Lord.

"Not yet!" the Doctor hurried to Minerva and snatched the scanner from her to then flash it in front of Maisie's face.

"Doctor!" Minerva frowned. The Doctor had shut off his mind to her which indicated there was a plan brewing she wouldn't agree on.

"Focus!" the Doctor told Maisie who was looking between the device in front of her face and the nearing Mummy. "Focus! All of that is your grief, your trauma, your resentment. And now-" he turned the scanner to his own head and 'zapped' himself, "-it's mine!"

"It's….gone," Maisie breathed in surprise, thinking it was over.

"No, it's not," Minerva now crossed her arms and glared at her husband. "It's now heading for the Doctor."

"Start the clock," the Doctor ordered for Perkins. "Hello," he actually greeted the Mummy. "I'm so pleased to finally see you." As the Mummy walked towards him, the Doctor took steps backwards. "I'm the Doctor and I will be your victim this evening. Are you my mummy?"

"Oh you did not just-" Minerva had let her arms drop to her sides.

"A bit busy here, darling," the Doctor shushed her calmly and addressed the Mummy again. "But you can't hurt me until my time is up. I think. So are there magic words? Is there a way to stop you in your tracks? Oh, you really didn't like your gran, did you?" his eyes briefly flickered to Maisie.

Liv squinted her eyes at the Mummy and noticed something poking out from under the bandages. "Hold up, what's that?" she pointed.

The Doctor followed her finger to see what she was speaking about. "Oh," he said, but then once more looked at Maisie. "By the way, you weren't being paranoid. She really did poison your pony."

"Oh!" Maisie frowned.

"Those markings…" Liv glanced back at the scroll on the wall. "Are they...matching?"

"Oh, and your father," the Doctor finished with Maisie who went wide-eyed.

" _What_!?"

"No, hold on," Liv dreaded as she walked forwards. The Mummy didn't seem interested in her and she thanked her stars she was already technically dead to be in his radar. "There's wood here, Doctor."

"Thirty seconds!" called Perkins.

"That doesn't sound like a scroll. That sounds like a flag!" the Doctor realized. "And if that sounds like a flag, if this is a flag, that means that you-" he pointed at the Mummy, "-are a soldier, wounded in a forgotten war thousands of years ago."

"He's a soldier!?" Liv gawked at the Mummy.

"But they've worked on you, haven't they, son?" the Doctor didn't even flinch when the Mummy grew exceptionally close. "They've filled you full of kit. State of the art phase camouflage, personal teleporter."

"Doctor, there are 10 seconds," Minerva warned angrily. "And if you die I'll kill you!"

"On it, darling," the Doctor promised her. "All that tech inside of you...it just won't let you die."

"You're in limbo," Liv correlated herself and instantly became sympathetic. Clara noticed the expression.

"It won't let the war end. It just won't let you stop until the war is over," the Doctor was now practically face-to-face with the Mummy and just as it reached for his head, the Time Lord said, "We surrender."

"Zero," Perkins looked up from the timer.

Maisie gasped once again as she saw the Mummy. "I can see it again!"

"It's okay, I think we all can," Clara watched the Mummy take a step back from the Doctor.

"Do I start the clock again?" Perkins asked dreadfully.

"No, the clock's stopped," Minerva said and walked to the Doctor, intending on yanking him away from the creature.

"It's time to rest, soldier. Go and...finally rest," Liv said quietly to the Mummy just as it disintegrated.

In place of the Mummy was a piece of blue tech with wires. The Doctor bent down to pick it up.

"We were fighting _that_?" Clara eyed the pile of dust.

"So was he," the Doctor mumbled and hurried back to the lab tables. "Well, Gus, I think we solved your little puzzle. Ancient soldier being driven by malfunctioning tech."

"Thank you so much for your efforts. They are greatly appreciated. Unfortunately, survivors of this exercise are not required."

"There's a shocker," Minerva rolled her eyes. Other people soon began to clutch at their throats when they felt the lack of air.

"Air will now be removed from the entire train. We hope you have enjoyed your journey on the Orient Express."

"Oh I can't wait for the day I meet you, _Gus_ ," Minerva muttered and went to hurry to help the Doctor.

"I take it you know a way you?" Clara was beginning to feel the effects of the air and stumbled towards the two aliens.

"My enemy's enemy is my friend," the Doctor worked fast. "Especially when he has a built in teleporter."

"Less talking, more work!" Liv watched the humans fall like dominoes from the lack of air and could feel even Clara's stress on her.

"Just a little more!" Minerva exclaimed.

"Couple of minutes. Max," the Doctor promised. "We'll give you a shout."

But Clara went down as well.

Liv felt woozy herself which put her into further confusion. It shouldn't matter because she wasn't even breathing anymore - she hadn't breathed in such a long time! But then Minerva's words came back to mind...

~ 0 ~

When Clara woke up, she found herself wrapped in a warm blanket, over a second one a beach. She sat up and quickly spotted Minerva and the Doctor not too far from her. The Doctor held a stick and was pointing it at some sort of math symbols he'd probably drawn on the sand between him and Minerva.

"I'm not doing it. I hate math," Minerva was eyeing the symbols with heavy dislike.

"They've been at this for an hour and Minerva is so close to snapping that stick in two," Liv sat beside Clara suddenly, but Clara didn't even flinch. She was so used to Liv's spontaneous appearances - but it made a hell of a show when Liv did it to Danny.

"Doctor!" Minerva snatched the stick and iced it till it shattered to pieces.

"Cheater," was all the Doctor had to say to her. He saw Clara had woken up and so Minerva instantly knew through their telepathic mind connection.

"Sleep well?" Minerva turned around to face Clara, as did the Doctor.

"Weren't we just on a train?" Clara knew that she did not remember stepping into the TARDIS and much less landing on some pink-skied planet.

"Oh, that was ages ago," the Doctor gave a light shrug of his shoulders.

"And?"

"And what?" the Doctor repeated. "Oh, and we got off the train. Oh, well, the teleporter worked eventually. Beamed everyone into the Tardis. No casualties, just a bevy of sleeping beauties."

"We tried hacking Gus from the Tardis, find out who set this all up. He really didn't like that, though," Minerva looked to the side. "Set off some fail-safe thing. He blew up the train," she said rather put out.

"Blew up the train?" Clara's eyes widened in alarm.

"But we got away. Then we dropped everyone off at the nearest civilised planet, which happened to be here," the Doctor gestured to the distant city they had to the side.

"So you saved everyone," Clara concluded on her own.

"Contrary to what you liked to believe, I do save other people besides my wife," the Doctor took a jab at her earlier words.

"Alright," Liv started getting up. "I'm not having more fights between any of you. Now this has gone long enough. Doctor-" she glanced at the man, "-under the circumstances, I think we can agree that Clara's question was rather brash but honest. Besides, she was under pressure so she didn't even know-"

"No, Liv," Clara cut her off suddenly, "I know where you're going with it and I'm going to stop you." She shook off the blanket from her and began to get up. "I asked how far you would go to save Minerva because it's something I hadn't considered, alright? When I first met you, I was dazzled by everything that I didn't even stop to think about you all as a family. It was just space to me. I guess…" she sighed as she trailed off trying to find the right words.

Minerva knew them perfectly. "One could say that you _changed_." Clara hadn't made that connection before so and was stunned to hear it out loud. Minerva took that silence to make her point. "You see, Clara, change is inevitable. I'll admit that I hadn't yet realized that I changed a lot, but I'm glad I changed. Because if I hadn't, if I still remained that girl who was a pushover on her own planet, I would have died a long time ago." Clara looked down silently, contemplating Minerva's words. "But does that even make any difference for you?" Minerva challenged. "Because you seem so hell bent on making us the bad people. I imagine it's to make it easier to hate us."

Clara raised her head to argue and clarify her thoughts. "I don't hate you-"

"But you would've liked to," Minerva smirked lightly. "Clara, let us tell you something about us," she pointed between her and the Doctor, "We are the only people who give a damn about the entire universe."

"Meaning that all decisions lay with us," the Doctor added on, "And sometimes the only choices we have are bad ones. But we still have to choose."

"So then why didn't you choose on the Moon?" Clara asked frantically. "Why did you put me and Liv through that?"

"My wife had a purpose," the Doctor looked at Minerva to take it over.

"Are you ready?" Minerva asked beforehand so that Clara could truly decide whether or not she could handle it. "Because after I tell you, you're going to be different."

Clara thought it over for a minute, eyes to the side, and nodded her head. "Yes. Tell me, please."

Minerva took a breath in and started explaining. "After you and Liv went into the Doctor's timeline - creating multiple echoes of each other - I started noticing some odd things between you two," she pointed at Clara then Liv.

"What kind?" Clara oddly stared at the blond.

"Well, you would finish each other's sentences, sometimes you would say such sentences together...like you were both thinking it at the same time. Additionally, your feelings. Haven't you noticed? When you're deeply upset, confused, happy...Liv expresses the same _exact_ expression."

It was clear Clara hadn't noticed. She glanced at Liv as if to confirm this was so far true.

"I started to wonder that maybe this was an effect from the Doctor's timeline. You've both lived and died at the same time for so long that what if at some point you became interwoven."

A brief look of horror flashed across Clara's face.

"What one felt, the other would too. But then another thought crossed my mind: who held the complete control? Or was it completely equal? I couldn't answer that without a proper experiment."

"The Moon…?" Clara fit the pieces together. "The moon was an _experiment_?'

"A spontaneous one, but yes," Minerva nodded. "When we realized someone would have to decide whether or not the Moon lived...I decided that this was the opportunity I was waiting for." Minerva took a big breath in. "So I went with it. I told the Doctor we couldn't interfere. You and Liv had to make the decision. I needed to see if one's decision would change the other's. You, Clara, said the Moon should live, but Liv disagreed."

"But in the end we both agreed," Clara reminded what she believed to have happened.

"Did you?" the Doctor asked in such a way that made Clara reconsider.

Liv sighed and turned to Clara. "I didn't," she admitted. "My opinion was awful but it remained till the end. I didn't press the button because I changed my mind. I pressed it because a different opinion _invaded_ my mind. _Your_ opinion, Clara. That's what made me do it."

Clara seemed too overwhelmed and turned to the side to process. "So I...I could...change Liv's thoughts?"

"Well, that's just one aspect," Minerva said slowly. With wide eyes, Clara returned her gaze to the blonde, dreading what came next. "See, you can kind of think of it as if you were _linked_."

"Linked?" Clara repeated with even more horror. "Like you two?" she gestured to Minerva and the Doctor.

"Not exactly like us, but in a way…" Minerva could see the conflict in Clara and hoped that it wouldn't affect her so much as she feared. "See, I picture this relationship as a 50/60 kind of thing between you two. You, Clara, hold the 60%, making you the overall holder of the feeling and thoughts."

"M-me?" Clara gaped and looked at Liv for some comment.

"It's true," sighed Liv. "When I pressed the button, I did it because _you_ wanted to do it. But since you didn't, it manifested in me and so I pressed it."

Clara took a breath in and slowly exhaled while she made sense of it all. "What else?" she asked after a moment. "Because there has to be something else for you to keep it a secret like this. Apart from me apparently being able to change Liv's mind, what else is there?"

Minerva exchanged a look with the Doctor, suddenly nervous herself. The Doctor reached for her nearest hand and held it tight, encouraging Minerva to go on. Clara watched this and grew even more anxious. "Well, I believe that...because Liv's echoes died when your echoes neared death…" Minerva swallowed hard, "...when you die, Liv will...cease to exist forever."

It was the last straw for Clara. "Oh my God!" she turned away from them, hands on her head. Liv, too, was surprised but only the Doctor could see that it hadn't made such an issue apparently.

"I'm sorry," Minerva grew teary eyed. "I was so scared of this that I needed to know for sure."

"And now you know," Clara sniffled. "Because of me, Liv's life is tethered to mine. I'm going to kill you in the end," she said to Liv, absolutely horrified.

"No," Liv calmly said and sighed. "Minerva, can I have a moment with Clara, please?"

Minerva nodded. The Doctor then led her by the hand towards the TARDIS but before Minerva went in, she stopped and turned to Clara. "Clara, I _am_ sorry for what I did. My intentions were honest but my actions were wrong."

Clara acknowledged the apology and gave a nod of her own.

"Clara, look at me," Liv had come up to the overwhelmed brunette and put her hands on her shoulders. "Look at me, Clara. Now." Clara looked up to reveal her teary eyes. "Why are you crying?"

"Didn't you hear? You and I are linked. But not even that - I can control everything you feel and do!"

"I know that's a lot of pressure but we can work on that-"

"I don't want that!" Clara snapped unintentionally and gasped once she realized it. "I'm sorry," she said, more calmly, but Liv wasn't bothered. She knew this would happen and she probably would have been worried if Clara had taken it all with ease.

Liv made a gesture she was going to be speaking, hopefilly allowing Clara to set her thoughts. "I can't imagine what sort of pressure this is on you but I'm here to clarify that I don't care about what's gonna happen or what it means."

The moment Liv's words were out in the open, Clara garnered an incredulous expression. "How can you say that? Didn't you hear? Our feelings are interwoven. There can never be a thought, a feeling that only you or only I will feel. Liv…" Clara's eyes filled with tears again, "...because of me you're going to die...again. For real."

And yet, Liv showed no sign of displeasure. It just confused Clara even more.

"Don't you care?" she asked the blonde. "Liv, because of me you will disappear forever. Do you know what that means for you?"

"You want to know what that means for someone who was unhappily resigned to living _forever_?" Liv gave a small, happy smile. "Rest. It means eternal peace."

"What?" Clara was sure she had heard wrong. Her emotions were making her hear that Liv was actually fine with dying.

"Clara, before you, I was alone. I saw small children who if I grew attached to - like Amelia - and I would later lose them forever. That was not the afterlife I was looking for," Liv sighed. "You have no idea how much i wished to just die before I met you. I was alone."

"But you're not anymore-" Clara ventured to remind Liv that she'd found Minerva again, and not just her, but a friend in the Doctor, and a nephew with Elias.

"I know that," Liv assured. "I know that you're gonna tell me that I have Minerva again, but it's like I said before. I had made my peace with Minerva. She was moving on with her life. She found the Doctor, she had a son - she was happy. I resigned myself to look from afar and never be able to tell her that my death was not her fault."

"But you were able to," Clara insisted on making Liv see how wrong she was. "You were given life again so that you could be with your family again."

"It gave me a chance to make peace with Minerva," Liv clarified. "And yes, it was fun to feel like a family again, but after a while…" she softly smiled, "...you want to move on. The phrase 'rest in peace' is something I thought I would never get to do."

Although Clara still couldn't believe this was Liv's ideal ending, she did admit to herself that it was a little less stressful knowing Liv wouldn't blame her when it came time to die.

"Clara, it's okay," Liv promised. "No one should live forever." Clara felt overwhelmed again and encased Liv in a tight hug. "When it comes time, we'll go together," Liv said, hugging back. "And that is a good ending for us."

~0~

When all was said and done, Minerva remained alone in the console room. Clara and Liv had been dropped off and Elias picked up. While the Doctor took his turn to put the boy asleep, Minerva went back through her studies on the case. It had been cleared and set in stone. She would lose her sister again but this time she would lose Liv forever. Even though Liv had explained to Minerva and the Doctor what she thought about it, Minerva still couldn't feel happy of the fact. She knew she wasn't alone anymore, far from it actually, but to have Liv around and give her that complete human family was something Minerva had dreamed of since she was human. She didn't want to lose it anymore, but she was...eventually.

With a sigh, she turned off the console monitor and turned to leave. She was just making her way up the small stairs when the Doctor emerged from the corridor.

"Elias is asleep," the Doctor took her hand as he came down and turned her with him. "But he still doesn't like 'Ca-yah'," he mimicked his son's voice.

Minerva chuckled. "We're going to have to explain to him everything is okay now."

"Good luck," the Doctor let her hand go and went for the console. Minerva watched him turn on the monitor to find Clara and Liv's case. "How are we doing with this?" he tapped a finger on the screen.

"I...don't even know," Minerva confessed with a small laugh. "I'm sad, I'm _really_ sad...but then Liv says that she's not sad so I shouldn't be sad but I'm…" her voice cut off as the emotions got to her again.

"Okay," the Doctor walked back to her and put his hands on her arms. "It's okay, darling. It's difficult but...if Liv is okay with her fate, then there is no reason you shouldn't be. You enjoy the moments you're going to have with your sister."

"I know," Minerva nodded her head. "And I will. I _so_ will."

"There we go," the Doctor kissed her forehead and gave her a tight hug. "You know I'm here for you."

"Mm, I know," Minerva kissed his cheek and stepped back with a smile. "You are my rock, after all."

The Doctor smiled and backtracked for the console. "Before we go to sleep, I thought we'd do one last thing."

"Oh? What's that?" Minerva raised an eyebrow, staying where she was.

The Doctor made a finger to be waited on and then turned to the monitor. He did a quick typing here and there and pressed the final key button to start...a song. He turned to face his wife who was looking rather bemused. "Would you dance with me, darling?" he extended a hand for her to take.

"But I thought you didn't do dancing anymore," Minerva said, keeping her hands by her side.

"No, I prefer to dance when we're alone."

"Because you're embarrassed?"

The Doctor reached for one of Minerva's hand and pulled her right up to him, smiling at her small 'oh!' she gave off. "Not quite," he leaned down to her ear, "It's more intimate, don't you think?"

Minerva looked up in surprise, but a long smile soon found its way across her lips. "I agree."

She let him lead them into a small dance that would've been fine for the 1920s jazz...but it did feel a lot better there at the moment, just between them. The Doctor gave her a smooth twirl and enjoyed seeing her spirits lifting.

"Thank you my Martian," Minerva kissed him gently. "But I've had enough dancing for now…" she whispered and started to smirk, "...I'm the mood for a little something else…?" she arched an eyebrow at the Doctor.

"I...would agree," the Doctor barely got the words out before Minerva started to pull him, going backwards, for the corridors.

"I thought you might," Minerva chuckled and brought him down for another kiss.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

I felt nostalgic when I went back to write this chapter because of the very early chapter I had done on the Orient express way back in _Star-Crossed_ *tears*. How my babies have grown since then!

Also I'd like to apologize for the late updating. We've entered finals era and I've had a lot of essays to do . But anyways, I'm still here, doing my best!

 **For the Review:**

Listen I personally hated Kill the Moon because to _me_ what 12 did was completely OOC. He pulled that line of Earth not being his planet way out of nowhere when he's been saving the planet, calling the shots before and after. I mean, the man literally gets named the president of the entire world. Yeah I get that Minerva did something wrong - I wrote story knowing she did something wrong - and of course Clara was meant to go off on her. I wrote all that on purpose. But to say that I took 12's decision away doesn't sound fair to me. I mean, Minerva didn't force him, she just asked and, because he loved her, he went with it. Roles reversed Minerva would've done the same thing. It's how I've written them. It doesn't mean it's right but it's just their relationship. I get what you mean about him being powerful and whatnot but you gotta remember that when he goes all oncoming storm it's against his _enemies_. But Minerva's been the woman he's loved for _thousands_ of years so obviously that's not gonna apply to her. The problem is controversial, I get that, and I totally see what you mean. 12 shouldn't have gone with the plan but ultimately he did, and it was wrong. Minerva shouldn't have done it in the first place but she was desperate.

* * *

Soo...there's only 3 chapters left of this story? How crazy is that? I didn't even realize it until I uploaded the next chapter onto the site xD. I personally love the next story because of course I've twisted it for my characters soo...I'm excited, I'll just leave it at that :D


	9. Flatline

"Elias, don't do that - no!" Clara was too late to save the pile of her students' papers from being thrown off the console chair.

Elias cheered as all the papers went flying to the floor. "Yay! I win!" he then stuck a very threatening finger at Clara. "Boo, Ca-yah!"

Clara sighed and started to pick up the closest papers to her. Minerva left the Doctor at the console to go help the brunette.

"You could leave all that stuff in another room, like an office, you know. The TARDIS could make you one," Minerva gathered some of the papers. "You could avoid a very bad boy-" she said purposely loud for Elias, giving him a stern look, "-messing it up."

Elias didn't seem to mind his mother's scold. He picked up his teddy bear Roger and went to his father, giggling all the way.

"Oh, no. It's all right," Clara sighed, by this point used to Elias' feisty attitude towards her. Ever since the fiasco on the Moon, Elias had taken resentment towards her because she had "yelled at his mommy" and made her upset. Clara knew Elias was just a kid, and that everything for him was heightened when it came to "bad". She had tried making amends with him, trying to take him out on her own and do fun things with him. Unfortunately, Elias wasn't easily convinced to forgive and forget.

Exhibit number 23.

Clara took some more papers into her hands then straightened up. "Besides, Danny's got a little bit territorial. The idea of me leaving so much as a toothbrush here. But, still, he's all right with us doing this which I admit is a little bit weird, cos you'd think if he had a problem with me leaving stuff in the Tardis, he'd object to me travelling in the Tardis. But he's not, so."

Minerva wasn't pleased to hear all that but since her son had just made a mess of Clara's papers, she didn't say anything. "Here," she handed Clara the remaining papers.

"Okay. Er, same time you left, same place-ish," the Doctor announced from his spot, now holding Elias on one side.

"Ish? Don't give me an ish," Clara shook her head.

The Doctor leaned towards the monitor when he found odd things. "These readings are very er, ishy…"

"Oh-" Liv appeared by the rails, "-I think we've passed 'ishy', my friend."

They all turned to see she was staring at the doorway which had the size of about a meter high.

"Small door!" Elias gasped and immediately started wiggling in the Doctor's arms to be let down. "Me first! Me first!"

"Well that can't be right," Minerva put a hand on her hip. Elias scurried past them all to open the door first.

Clara moved over, being the closest, to open the door for him. Soon as she reached for it, however, Elias hit her hand and frowned. "No, Ca-yah!"

Clara raised her hands and allowed him to get through first. As they could, the group struggled to get through the smaller threshold and found themselves in a waste ground.

"Train!" Elias cheered when he saw nearby railroad tracks. "Choo, choo! Cmon, Roger!"

"Oh no you don't," Minerva swiped him off the ground before he started for the tracks.

"What caused this?" Liv stared at the smaller TARDIS.

Clara flatout ignored the sonic screwdriver being used against her by the Doctor while she searched for some indication of where they were. "Bristol? Doctor, we're in Bristol!"

"And a hundred and twenty miles from where we should be," the Doctor raised the sonic from her. "Impressive."

"No. Not impressive. _Annoying_ ," Clara clarified.

"Be glad he wasn't 14 years over," Minerva laughed to herself. "It is so impressive."

"And that-" the Doctor pointed with the sonic at the TARDIS, "-is annoying. The Tardis never does this. This is huge! Well, not literally huge. Slightly smaller than usual. Which is huge."

"I can't believe you're excited over that," Liv said, though completely unsurprised.

"When can I go home?" Clara turned to the Time Lord expectantly.

"Your house isn't going anywhere. And neither is ours until I get this figured out," the Doctor huffed. "Could you not just let me enjoy this moment of not knowing something? I mean, it happens so rarely."

Minerva raised an eyebrow. "There's my arrogant husband I hadn't seen in awhile."

Clara scoffed. "Love must make you blind, don't it?"

"Look, I don't think this is dangerous, but I wouldn't like you to get squished accidentally," the Doctor put away his sonic. "Anyway, I need you to help me find out what's caused this."

"Fine. I'll go take a look around," Clara resigned.

"Elias, Mommy wants you to go with Clara," Minerva turned the young boy to face Clara, instantly receiving protests from Elias.

"No! No! No, Ca-yah," Elias meant to make a run for the small TARDIS but the Doctor caught him in time.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Clara hesitated to agree seeing Elias so against her.

"I don't think having him in a shrinking TARDIS is better," Minerva explained her concern. "If anything happens, I at least want to know my son is in good hands."

"Plus, it'll give you a chance to make up," the Doctor brought over Elias and handed the boy to Clara.

"No! Let go, Ca-yah!" Elias used his teddy bear to hit Clara in the face.

"Hey!" Minerva snatched the bear from him, now upset with him. "We do _not_ hit our family, Elias." Hearing his mother's angry voice made Elias go silent. "Now you are going to go help Clara and if she tells me you were misbehaving you are not getting Roger back. Understand me?"

Elias pouted and reached for his bear but Minerva handed it to the Doctor. "Roger?" Elias asked softly.

"Sorry, El," the Doctor smiled and ruffled Elias' ginger hair. "You get Roger after you come back. I'll keep him safe for you, okay?"

Elias let his head drop on Clara's shoulder, upset beyond belief for a toddler. "Leggo, Ca-yah," he muttered.

Clara smiled. "We're gonna go check the place out."

"Careful," Minerva warned.

"Of course," Clara started walking away with Elias in her arms and Liv at her side.

"Are you sure that was the best idea?" the Doctor asked Minerva once the others were out of hearing distance.

"Elias has to forgive Clara already, and this is the perfect opportunity," Minerva smiled and started for the TARDIS. "Now c'mon, we better get this figured out."

~ 0 ~

"Elias, please don't run," Clara sighed as she sprinted after the toddler who refused to walk by her side. "It's dangerous!"

"No, Ca-yah. You go way," Elias waved a small hand at her to leave him alone. "Vestating like Mommy and Daddy."

Clara smiled at the young boy's attempt to _investigate_ like his parents. She stopped Elias by an underpass and bent down in front of him, holding his hands in hers so that he wouldn't try to run away.

Elias immediately started to fuss. "No! Let go!"

"Elias, c'mon-"

"No!"

Liv then popped in beside the two, hands on hips, and with a very motherly face on. "Are we really going to argue right now?"

"I can't let him go on his own," Clara explained the logical reason.

"You go 'way," Elias continued to fuss, trying desperately to pull his hands from Clara's.

Liv sighed and squatted down beside the two. "Elias, auntie Liv would really like to see you hold Clara's hand."

"But why?" asked the toddler with a pout.

"Because auntie Liv is scared Elias may get lost if he doesn't hold Clara's hand. Do you want auntie Liv to get sad?"

Elias shook his head. "No! Okay," he said to Clara. "Hands?"

"Because I hadn't thought of that," Clara playfully rolled her eyes. Now with a much more easier toddler taking her hand, they were able to continue their investigation. They came down an underpass where various shrines of pictures and flowers lined the staircase.

Clara looked down at the pictures meant to be for local deaths. At the top of the staircase, one of the workers called out to her.

"Cheer up, love. Might never happen."

Clara looked up rather confused.

Another man scolded his co-worker. "Have some respect. She's grieving."

"Oh, sorry, love. I didn't mean nothing by it," apologized the first worker.

Clara made a face and decided to leave that behind. She took Elias down the rest of the way.

"Someone's coming," Liv warned once she caught site of one of the workers, probably the youngest, coming after her.

"Pictures!" Elias cheerfully said when they stopped by the wall full of images of people with their backs to them.

"Sorry about them," the man, Rigsy, stopped beside Clara. "They're idiots."

Clara politely smiled. "That's all right, don't worry. I've heard worse."

"I've lost someone, too. My Aunt Karina. Deaf as a post. Didn't really know her that well but she's still gone. Is your one in the mural?"

"I want to dwah," Elias tugged on Clara's hand towards the wall. If the man could touch the picture why couldn't he?

"No, I haven't, actually," Clara answered Rigsy and kept a tighter hold on Elias' hand.

Rigsy stepped backwards. "I'm sure they'll get round to it at some point. I'm not really with that lot out there. I just have to do this community service thing. I just do graffiti. Not anything, you know, murdery or…"

"Make him stop," Liv looked amused.

"So what's all this about?" Clara asked Rigsy before things got more awkward. "What's happened to all these people?"

The question had set Rigsy into a state of confusion. "You mean you don't know?"

~ 0 ~

"This _would_ happen," Minerva boredly stared at the doors of the TARDIS that were now reduced to a couple of inches at the center of the wall.

Meanwhile, the Doctor tended to a call from Clara - set on speaker - and listened to the problem of the nearby area. "People are missing all over the estate. Do you think there's a connection?"

"Could be…" the Doctor said, though still pretty unsure based on the little information Clara had supplied them with.

"And where are you?" Clara had come to a stop where the TARDIS had been originally. Even Elias was curiously wondering where his parents were at the moment.

Minerva turned around from the small doors. "Exactly where we were."

"No, you're not. We're here and I can't see-"

"I win!" Elias suddenly exclaimed. He took Clara's distraction to rush forwards. He had spotted the miniature TARDIS on the ground and treated it as a game.

"Oh…" went both Clara and Liv with tilted heads.

"Prize?" Elias turned around holding the TARDIS in his hands.

Liv burst into laughter, causing Clara to struggle to stay serious. The TARDIS was probably around six inches high at the most. "Oh my God, that is so adorable," Clara bent down in front of Elias who was surprisingly holding the TARDIS rather still. "Are you two in there?"

Minerva, however, found it not amusing. "No, we popped out for some coffee."

"Mommy! Come out," Elias said softly and proceeded to give the TARDIS a jiggle. Clara immediately took the box from him but couldn't help laugh again.

"I'm going to be sick," Minerva turned back for the console with a pale face. She loved her son, but at the moment she wished he was a bit older to understand.

The Doctor put a hand on her back to soothe her for a moment. "Okay?" he asked her. She gave him a nod after a moment. He kissed her shortly then went undet the console to retrieve a metal box.

"So is this more shrink ray stuff?" Clara asked them. "Are you tiny in there?"

"No need to sound so serious," Minerva purposely called out loud.

"We're exactly the same size," the Doctor answered the question. "It's merely the exterior dimensions that have changed." He pulled out an object and headed for the tiny slot serving as a door. "Stop laughing. This is serious!"

Clara was having major difficulty following that. "Yeah, well, I can't help it, can I, with you and your big old face. How are you going to get out?"

"Well, plainly we can't. Something nearby is leeching all the external dimensions."

"Is it aliens?" Liv asked, but knowing their luck it probably was.

"Possibly. Oh, who am I kidding? Probably. Sensors are down and we can't risk taking off with it in this state. We've managed to get a rough fix on the source of the dimensional leeching." The Doctor stUck his fingers to point in the needed direction. "It's roughly north west. That way."

"Daddy!" Elias began to hop trying to reach the TARDIS in Clara's hands.

Clara, in the meanwhile, was making a face. "Please don't do that. That's just wrong."

Minerva walked over to the Doctor holding the psychic paper. "Clara, you'll be needing this too."

"Oh, wow. This is an honor," Clara said as the psychic paper was pushed through to her. "Does this mean I'm you now? Can I be the Queen?"

"No," came Minerva's sure answer.

Clara glumly received the sonic screwdriver as well. "Well…"

"And listen, stick this in your ear," the Doctor passed on one final device. Without questioning, Clara stuck it in her ear.

"Can you hear us?" The Doctor tested.

"Yes," Clara answered dutifully but then gasped when something snapped in her ear. "Ow!"

"You really didn't think to _ask_ what it was first?" Liv gave her a disapproving look.

Elias giggled. "Owie for Ca-yah," he teased.

"What just happened?" Clara rubbed her head.

"It's a nanotech, don't worry," Minerva responded. "We just hacked your optic nerve."

"What does that mean?"

"Well, assuming optic does still stand for visual I'm going to say we'll be seeing what you see."

"Now get to work," the Doctor ordered. "And take care of our son."

Clara put the TARDIS in her shoulder bag. "I get the feeling I'll have an easier time with the enemy than with Elias."

~0~

"I wanna help," Elias said when Clara used the sonic on a block of flats.

Liv bent down beside the boy with a soft smile. "Cheer up, El. When you're older, you Mommy and Daddy are going to make you your own sonic screwdriver."

"Over my dead body that is," Clara then heard Minerva scoff through the nanotech.

Minerva could only imagine what sort of trouble would a teenage Elias find himself in, plus the sonic! She was not going to risk a second Doctor running around without the proper teaching.

"Anything?" Clara finally lowered the sonic after using it on another wall of murals.

"Yes, I'm dizzy," the Doctor looked up from the monitor. "But nothing useful."

"You never did tell me your name," one of the workers from before, Rigsy, caught up with Clara again.

"No time to fraternize. Come on, get rid of him," the Doctor said without a moment's hesitation.

"Now wait a minute," Minerva put a hand on his arm, "He's a local. Maybe he can help us."

Meanwhile, Clara struggled coming up with an answer for Rigsy. "I'm er…" her eyes flickered to the sonic still in her hand, "...the Doctor."

The Doctor's eyes widened, stunned she was actually going to go with that. "Don't you dare…"

But it just seemed to fuel Clara's answer more. "Doctor Oswald. But you can call me Clara."

"Me?" Elias looked up at her, waiting to be introduced. It was the least she could do.

"And that's my companion, Elias," Clara just went with it and patted the boy's head.

"I'm Rigsy. So er, what are you a doctor of?"

"Of lies!" the Doctor shouted like he would be heard. Beside him, Minerva was struggling not to laugh.

"Well, I'm usually quite vague about that," Clara shrugged. "I think I just picked the title because it makes me sound important."

Liv was not like Minerva. She was laughing too hard at it all. "You're awful," she told Clara.

In the TARDIS, Minerva took over for a moment. "Doctor Oswald, I think it's best to get back to work. The Doctor is ready to pop his head off."

The Time Lord in question huffed.

"What are you exactly?" Rigsy eyes Clara suspiciously. "You don't smell like police but that's some pretty cool gear you got there." He motioned to the sonic in her hand. "You like a spy, or something?"

"Oh-" the Doctor scoffed sardonically, "-he's a bright one, hang on to him."

Minerva covered his mouth with a hand then spoke to Clara. "Ask him if he knows anything, Clara. The best way to conduct an investigation is to get to the civilians."

~0~

Rigsy was more than willing to help when Clara started asking questions. He offered to bring her and Elias - and unknowingly Liv - to the last victim's apartment.  
"He was the last one to go missing," he explained as he tore through the police tape on the door. Elias, wanting to help, pulled on the tape nearest to his level. "And when he disappeared all the doors and windows were locked from the inside."

"Ooh, there you go," Minerva glanced at the Doctor, both following from the monitor, "You always say you love a good locked room mystery."

"Figures," Clara said from her line.

"What?" Rigsy gave her an odd look once they crossed into the apartment.

"Huh? Oh, sorry. I'm talking to somebody else. They're listening in. Minerva, Doctor, Rigsy, Rigsy, Minerva and the Doctor."

"Everyone gets an introduction but me," Liv glumly went away from the three. She stopped by the wall of a bookshelf where she could see bits of what seemed like another mural in between the shelves.

"Yes, yes, hello, barely sentient local," the Doctor barely acknowledged.

"Another Doctor?" Rigsy blinked.

"How do you sleep at night?" countered the Doctor.

"Oh my God, you're just extra irritating today, aren't you?" Minerva looked at her husband in plain amusement.

The Doctor just upheld her state, looking rather bored. "He's a pudding brain, what do you want me to do?"

"Be a but nicer, perhaps?" Minerva casually waved a hand. "I mean, this man is helping Clara."

"Yes but he's not just a pudding brain, he's a _fluorescent_ pudding brain."

Minerva couldn't help smile. "I love you, you know that?" the Doctor responded with a smug look.

On the other side, Clara was trying her hardest not to listen in on any potential flirting between the two aliens. She studied the living room while crossing for the mantlepiece. Elias' hand was once again in hers, and for the first time, the toddler seemed to be on the same page. "And all those other missing people, I suppose you know where they lived," Clara remarked to Rigsy.

"He could still be in the room," Rigsy instead came out with.

"Sorry, what?"

"Sorry, nothing. I was just thinking out loud. It's like one of those locked room things you get in books. It's always something weird, like, he's still in the room or something. Do you want to go and check out another flat?"

"Now who paints a mural inside an apartment?" Liv asked herself what she thought was a fairly good question. Rigsy had come to stand beside her, the man clueless to her presence.

"Oooo," Elias began to say once he spotted the mural on the wall. "Trouble!" he pointed Clara to it. "Draw on paper!"

"Finally got the message," Minerva breathed a sigh of relief from the TARDIS. Elias seemed to have inherited her love for drawings, but unfortunately he had wanted to show off his drawings all over the place. Poor TARDIS had been covered in toddler scribbles on her walls. Even the Monsoon palace had caught some Elias' excitement. Despite being a prince, Minerva made it very clear to everyone in the palace that Elias was _not_ to draw on walls no matter what.

Clara pulled out the Doctor's sonic again and began to scan till she made her way towards the mural. "Are we missing something here? Missing man, locked room. Shrink ray?"

"Sorry, did you say just say shrink ray?" Rigsy glanced at her, a mixture of confusion and worriment etched on his face. Had he just ran into a crazy woman? But Clara hadn't caught on yet.

"What if he is still in this room like you said, only tiny? You know, like underneath the sofa or something."

"Clara," the Doctor spoke to her now, "This is the part where you usually scare off people."

"Okay. So er, my lunch break's nearly up. This this has been er, interesting," Rigsy made a face and started for the door.

Clara panicked as the man began to leave. Liv sighed and appeared in front of the door, this time visible to Rigsy. "I don't think so."

"Oh, because _that_ was a better idea!" Clara smacked a hand to her forehead.

"What the!?" Rigsy gasped and stepped backwards.

"Oh my God," Clara let go of Elias' hand for a moment to take out the TARDIS from her shoulder bag. "Doctor, Minerva, open the doors."

"Clara…?" Rigsy was now staring at Liv in full fear despite the blonde doing nothing but crossing her arms and standing.

"Rigsy, come here," Clara motioned for him to come over. She had set the TARDIS on a shelf. "Meet Minerva and the Doctor."

"I'd go," Liv shooed him away from the door.

"Mommy! Daddy! I'm here!" Elias hopped in vain to see the TARDIS. As Rigsy came over, Clara bent down and picked Elias up. The boy wanting to see his parents allowed it simply to catch sight of them. "I'm here!"

Minerva and the Doctor positioned themselves a bit away from the doors to be seen more complete than just their faces if they had stood right in front of the doors.

"There's my baby," Minerva laughed.

"And the pudding brain," the Doctor said boredly. He only smiled for his son who was frantically waving his small hand at them.

"Be nice," Clara scolded. "So, what do you think? Tiny man idea."

But the Doctor answered instead. "Yes, it's a lovely thought. Which is why I set the sonic to scan for that as soon as we entered. Pleased to meet you."

Liv walked over. "And you didn't think to tell us?" she glanced at Rigsy. "I'm Liv, by the way. Sorry for scaring you."

"It's bigger. On the inside," Rigsy finally spoke up after his much study of the box.

"Do you know-" Minerva tilted her head, looking amused, "-I don't think that statement's ever been truer."

"What are you?" Rigsy looked at all of them this time. "Like, aliens, or something?"

"Human," Clara pointed at herself then to Elias and the TARDIS, "They're aliens."

"And I'm a ghost," Liv settled for the brief version of her existence. "Explains the whole 'poof!' at the door thing."

Clara smiled at Rigsy who was trying to understand it all in one go. However, she heard a sizzling sound near them."Minerva? Doctor, did you hear that?"

Inside the TARDIS, Minerva and the Doctor were dealing with a heavy alarm from the console.

"Yes we did!" Minerva answered.

"Whatever it was, it just drained a massive amount of energy from inside the TARDIS!" the Doctor worked hard to prevent their energy levels to continue depleting.

"What was it!?"

"We don't know, but that's the least of our problems," Minerva sighed loudly, and frustrated. "Look, just get us out of there!"

The Doctor moved over to close the TARDIS doors. "This is just embarrassing. I'm from the race that built the TARDIS. Dimensions is kinda our thing. So why can't I understand this?"

"Mm, have you ever thought that perhaps there are just some things you don't know about?" Minerva teased as he returned to her side. However, the Doctor took that with a huff and a very serious 'I know everything.'

~0~

Needing to collect more information, Clara and Rigsy switched to a new flat of a disappeared victim. They had caught a policewoman in the area, and using the psychic paper they were able to get by as investigators themselves. She brought them to the new flat in hopes of figuring things out.

"This was the first reported disappearance, a Mister Heath," the police woman, identified as Forrest, showed them around. "It's not on the estate, but it's exactly the same MO as the rest."

The Doctor and Minerva closely worked in the console while Clara looked around.

"Clara, I think that your shrink ray theory was wrong…" the Doctor began.

Clara distanced herself from Forrest who seemed to be making her way as well. "My shrink ray theory? I thought you were already scanning for that."

"It's like a jigsaw puzzle…" Minerva looked up from the monitor in thought.

"What? What does that mean?" Clara impatiently asked for.

"It just struck me," the Doctor said casually, still thinking. "Locked room mysteries. Classic solution number one, they're still _in_ the room."

"Ooh," Minerva hummed once she caught sight of his thoughts. "Classic solution number two, they're in the walls!"

"Stop sounding so excited!" Clara scolded them both.

"Clara, quit your yelling," Minerva said, clueless of Clara's irritation. "We're discussing here. Now would you please break into those walls?"

Before Clara could refuse, she felt something nudging from her bag. "What…?" she dug a hand in and found a lump hammer being pushed through the box. With a sigh, she pulled it out and walked for the nearest wall. "Apparently they're in the walls."

And because they were so out of ideas, Forrest allowed it to be done. Rigsy began slamming the hammer into plaster work and Forrest went into the next room to attend to a call.

"My turn?" Elias looked up at Clara in hopes of getting a whack at the wall.

"I don't think so, El," Clara smiled down at him.

Immediately, he scrunched his nose, upset with her. "Boo, Ca-yah. Hm!"

Liv chuckled beside Clara, now visible to them since Forrest had left the room.

"Back to stage one," Clara sighed.

"So, you and these aliens...in the box. You do this sort of stuff a lot?" Rigsy asked.

"Oh, well, they're usually _out_ of the box," Clara patted Elias' head. "And they usually carry him around." Elias, annoyed, swatted her hand away from him.

"So how'd you get this gig?" Rigsy continued to question. "You study science, or aliens, or something?"

Clara laughed. "No. Well, it's kind of a more of a right place, right time or wrong place, wrong time depending on how they're behaving."

"Excuse you," came Minerva's sharp, scolding voice. "We _can_ hear you, you know."

Clara barely had time to laugh when they heard Forrest shouting for them. She swiped Elias off the floor and hurried after Rigsy into the next room.  
"PC Forrest? Hello? Hello?" Clara looked everywhere for the woman but it seemed she was gone too.

"Look," Liv moved over to where Forrest's flashlight laid on the carpet.

"She's gone," Clara informed the aliens in the TARDIS.

"What am I missing?" the Doctor tapped his fingers along the console. "The TARDIS should be able to detect anything in the known universe. The known universe. This universe."

Minerva was busy watching the monitor show them what Clara was seeing. Her eyes widened when Clara seemingly walked by a mural on the wall. "Clara, stop!"

"What? Why?" Clara immediately froze in her tracks thinking she'd gotten into some sort of fresh danger.

"Go back to that mural now!"

Slowly, Clara returned to the mural Minerva spoke about. She looked at it thinking it was funny. It was a reddish, orange color that seemed like squiggly lines branching out from a long, central.

"What is it?" Liv stared at the mural along with Clara.

"That...is a _nervous system_ ," Minerva declared after a moment's study.

"What?" Clara raised her eyebrows. "How could it be?"

"Be what?" Rigsy looked at her curiously.

"I've drawn my share to know what that is," Minerva stepped a bit to the side to let the Doctor have a look.

The Doctor agreed within the second. "It's scaled up and flattened. I think we've found PC Forrest. What's left of her, at least."

"Her nervous system…" Clara repeated for Rigsy's benefit. "PC Forrest's nervous system…"

The Doctor quickly began pulling up previous murals they had seen earlier. "The mural in the flat. That wasn't a desert at all. It's a microscopic blow up of human skin."

Clara couldn't help the disgust in her face. "What? Why?"

"Why else?" Minerva sighed. "What happens when a creature comes to a new world? They need to _study_. They're dissecting you to understand you."

"Actually, they're trying to understand three dimensions," the Doctor clarified.

Rigsy thought it was time for a needed break, and perhaps to get the hell out of that place. But, when he reached for the doorknob, he felt a sizzle. "Ow!" Clara whirled around, now holding Elias tighter in her arms. "The handle," Rigsy pulled away.

"The handle, they've flattened the handle," Clara told the two listening aliens.

"Fascinating. Clara, they're in the walls!" the Doctor exclaimed.

Minerva hit him on the arm. "Not while our son is there!"

The Doctor rather agreed there. "Alright, keep away from them. If they touch you, you're finished."

"So, it goes without saying, but keep my son away from it," Minerva warned.

Clara wasn't thinking of letting Elias go any time soon. She, Liv, and Rigsy watched in horror as the sofa and cushions lost...their third dimension properties?

"What happens if they touch us?" Rigsy dared to ask as another chair was lost to them.

"I would argue not to find out," Liv remained unaffected by the attack. She wished she could pass on the luck to Clara.

"Uuh…" Clara looked around helplessly for another way out.

"Der!" Elias pointed at a chair hanging from the ceiling.

"Good thinking, El," Clara rushed for the chair and climbed on. Elias didn't need to be told to hang on tight to her. His small arms were looped around her neck.

"They can't jump, can they?" Rigsy worriedly asked after climbing up as well.

"Again, let's hope we don't have to find out," Liv apoloegitcally smiled.

"How come it's not going after you?"

"Ghost," Liv shrugged. "Sorry."

When Clara heard her phone ringing, she couldn't believe her luck.

"Ca-yah…" Elias' voice was beginning to fill with fear. He suddenly wished his Mommy and Daddy were there.

"Ah, uh, it's okay, El, promise," Clara managed to get her phone out to answer Danny. "Hey, you."

"I've got our bench. Did you get held up?" there was a worried hint in Danny's voice that warned Clara he probably already had an idea of where she was at.

"Just a little. Sorry, Danny. I think lunch is er, a bust," Clara's eyes were glued to the carpet that was beginning to ripple as the enemy made it way towards them.

"Oh, hon, you're missing some classic park action," Danny said as a means to get her there already.

"Clara-" called the Doctor from the nanotech, "-the window! Hurry!"

"Oh... _wow_ …" Liv blinked and rubbed her eyes when the fireplace and mantelpiece ripple as well, leading it to come at them from every possible direction except down.

"Look! Look! They're climbing the walls!" Rigsy exclaimed.

"Ca-yah…" Elias began to whimper.

"What was that?" Danny suspiciously inquired.

"Er, that's just a guy on community support and I'm helping him find his auntie," Clara said with widened, alarmed eyes. She leaned her head on Elias who was now burying his head in her neck.

"Nice. Not technically lying," remarked the Doctor but Minerva was a bit more suspicious.

"Though _why_ she's lying is the more important part," she crossed her arms.

"Sounds kind of active," Danny slowly said, trying to pay more attention to the background for more clues of Clara's whereabouts.

Clara and Rigsy worked to swing the seat towards the window. There was no other way they were getting out, after all.

"Er, yeah, there was a thing, er a thing…" Clara flinched when the chain made a loud, groaning sound. She hoped it meant they would be able to make it out the window.

"Ca-yah!" Elias gasped when he saw the 'wibble' coming directly for them.

"It's okay, it's okay, it's okay!" Clara quickly sonicked the window as they grew closer. "Just hang on tight, El. Can you do that for me, please?"

Elias nodded his head and then hid his face in the crook of her neck again.

"Okay, where are you and are you in trouble?" came Danny's concerned voice.

"Clara, you'll jump now!" Liv practically shouted.

Clara didn't know who to speak nor listen to first. She just knew they were about to jump and so she clutched Elias' body and prayed for the best. From the console, Minerva and the Doctor could see only a blip of the crash followed by mixed screams.

"My baby!" Minerva cupped her face.

Liv appeared in the garden where, thankfully, Clara, Rigsy and Elias were safely lying.

"Clara!? Clara!?" the brunette heard Danny's loud voice coming from her phone. She blinked and sat up, first pulling Elias from her neck to check him over. "Are you okay?"

"Yes," Elias nodded his head but refused to pull his hands from his eyes.

From the console, his parents were attentively staring to see for any physical injuries. Their hearts had nearly stopped when they saw the crash. Though he was terribly afraid, Minerva and the Doctor were just relieved to see he was okay.

"Hey, it's going to be okay," Clara gently took Elias' hands from his face, revealing teary amber-brown eyes. "Even if Elias is upset with Ca-yah, she still loves him very much." She kissed his ginger hair and smiled when Elias gave a light one first.

"Clara, what's happening?" she then heard Danny again. She looked around for her phone and picked it up.

"Oh, not much, just some nonsense. Long story!"

"What story?"

"Tell you later. Love you!" and Clara hung up not a minute later. She would rather avoid questioning at a time like this.

"Well, apparently, these enemies are from a universe with only two dimensions," Minerva said thoughtfully from the console. "I didn't even know that was possible."

"Anything's possible, darling," the Doctor shrugged. "It's long been theorized, of course, but no one could go there and prove its existence without a heck of a diet."

"Now what's this long story you're going to tell Danny, hm?" Minerva had a face of annoyance suddenly. "Or haven't you made it up yet?"

"Sorry, what? What was that?" Clara had gotten up to her feet and, because Elias now refused to be put down, with the toddler in her arms.

"Oh just that you're an excellent liar, Doctor Oswald," Minerva gave a knowing glance at the Doctor.

"Yeah? Well, thought it was pretty weak myself," Clara said a bit proud of herself until Minerva corrected it.

"Oh no, we meant to _us_."

"Come again?"

"You told us that Danny was okay with you being back on board the TARDIS," the Doctor reminded, making Clara give a couple of 'ums' in return.

"Well...he is…"

"Because he doesn't know he's being lied to either," Minerva said rather harshly. "I almost feel sorry for him."

"Almost?" the Doctor gave her a thougthful look.

"He insulted you," Minerva shrugged. "I don't let that go for anything."

"Hm," the Doctor smirked.

As Clara listened on to how they practically hated her boyfriend, she and the others returned to the subway and underpass. "Ah, you guys are breaking up a bit," she touched her ear.

"Yeah, of course we are," Minerva rolled her eyes. "We're telling you your truths."

"No, I meant I can't hear you," Clara tapped her ear repeatedly in hopes of fixing the tech.

"Oh, right, blowing out that window's possibly affected the earpiece," the Doctor realized. "Take it out and sonic it."

"Doing it," Clara stopped to pull the tech from her ear. Rigsy continued a little up ahead to where his co-workers were currently painting over a mural. "Does it even still count as lying if you're doing for someone's own good? Well, like, technically their own good."

"No, you're just trying to convince yourself it was for the best," Minerva said without a second thought.

"Ouch," Clara made a face at that.

"No, wait!" the Doctor had spotted the mural Rigsy was frantically trying to stop his co-workers from painting over. He rushed for the doors and poked his fingers out to nudge Clara's arm. "Clara, the mural. Clara, it's the mural! Over there, look, the mural! We've found the missing people, they're in the walls!"

Clara quickly put the nanotech in her ear again. "Okay, what do I do?"

"Act normal, but get everyone out!"

"Gotta go invisible again, don't I?" Liv asked with a sigh. Clara nodded her head.

"No more drawings," Elias huffed and turned his head to the side to see said murals on the wall.

"They're not touching you, I promise," Clara patted his back. She cleared her throat to address the community workers. "They're very realistic. Who painted them?"

"I don't know. A local artist," Rigsy shrugged. "Probably a grieving relative."

"Did you ever meet them? Or did they just appear after people disappeared?"

One of the workers, Fenton gave her a rather rude look. "And who are you when you're at home, love?"

Clara brandished the psychic paper for all of them to see. "Health and safety. This subway is unsafe. Everyone needs to leave right now."

Fenton raised a mere eyebrow, apparently not quite inclined to obey. "Not to mention the fact you have a child with you, but that-" he pointed at the paper, "-is blank. Try again, sweetheart."

Clara blinked and took a look at the paper herself. "What?"

"Hm, it takes quite a lack of imagination to beat psychic paper," Minerva hummed with arms crossed. "Well done."

"Stan, do your job," ordered Fenton to another worker.

"Clara, stop him!" the Doctor quickly warned Clara while the other man went to pain over the wall. But Clara couldn't get there in time. Stan was sucked in with a cry the moment his brush touched the wall.

"Stan!" Rigsy reached for him but Clara yanked him back. The images on the wall, the 'murals', began to turn around and actually _face_ them.

"What is this? What are they?" another worker, Al, stepped three steps back from the wall.

"They're wearing the dead like camouflage," Minerva's lips curled in disgust. "How rude."

"Ca-yah, go time!" Elias tugged on Clara's hair frantically.

"Okay, forget Stan. He's gone," she told Rigsy. "We need to move, now!"

Rigsy nodded and motioned the rest of his workers to follow him as well.

"Drawings, bad!" Elias could see over Clara's shoulder that the paintings were sliding off the wall and moving across the tarmac.

They ended up coming into a nearby train shed where they quickly closed the corrugated iron door.

"Scan, now," Liv instructed Clara. With a nod of her head, Clara took out the sonic and began to scan the area.

"Did they follow us?" the last worker, George, asked Rigsy. "Cos I didn't see them follow us. Are we safe?"

"Are we really hiding from killer graffiti?" Al ran a hand down his face. "This is insane."

"I agree," the Doctor shook his head. "We'll have to think of a better name for them than that."

"And Stan was one of them," George recalled with a shiver. "Flattened, dead, but coming after us."

"Mm, Clara this is where your intervention comes in handy," Minerva almost sing-sang in Clara's ear. "It's a vital stage, really. This little group is currently confused and disorientated. But pretty soon a leader is going to emerge. You need to make sure that leader is you. Be the Queen." She smirked towards the end.

"What does that make me, then?" the Doctor tilted his head in thought.

"The Doctor," Minerva shrugged, receiving a sharp look in return. "I offered to make you King and you refused, remember?"

"The Monsoon only needed one beautiful Queen to rule it," the Doctor leaned over to kiss her cheek.

Clara would not take any flirting while she could hear it go down. She purposely spoke loud in order to cut their moments. "George, isn't it?" she called to the nearest worker. "Can you watch that area? If you hear anything, anything moves, you shout, okay?"

Before George moved, Fenton stepped forwards. "He will do no such thing until I get some answers. Who are you? That's what I want to know. Impersonating a government official. Trespassing on council property."

"Seriously?" Clara raised an eyebrow.

"Seriously."

"Fine, I'll tell you who I am." Clara tried to be as straight and towering as she could while holding a toddler on her hip. "I am the one chance you've got of staying alive. That's who I am."

"Hm, well done," Liv clapped beside her.

"Rigsy, how well do you know this area? Do you know where that door leads?" Clara pointed across them.

"It's the old Brunswick line. But it's not safe."

"Well, there's safe and there's safe," Al remarked.

"Yeah, I know it. I used to go down there all the time…"

"Yeah, I'll bet you did. Painting your filth," Fenton sneered.

"Boo you," Elias said to the man, sticking his tongue out as well.

"Those things come in here, that is our only way out," Clara told the rest and then added, just to herself, "I just hope I can keep them all alive."

"Ah, welcome to my world. So what's next, Doctor Clara?" the Doctor asked, fairly amused.

"Lie to them."

"What?" Minerva shared a confused glance at the Doctor.

"Lie to them. Give them hope. Tell them they're all going to be fine. Isn't that what you would do?"

The Doctor considered the value in those words. "In a manner of speaking. It's true that people with hope tend to run faster, whereas people who think they're doomed…"

"Dawdle. End up dead," Clara thought she'd never seen the truth more than she did at that point.

"See, when she does that it's not a good looking…" Minerva tilted her head.

"Well…" the Doctor began when Minerva then clarified.

"I was talking about me," she put a hand on her chest. "As a Queen, there are decisions that aren't always pretty. You have to be cold and calculating."

The Doctor held an amused smile on his face. "Right…" he turned to the monitor again, "...here's something that might help you. Do you remember the graffiti from the estate? Footprints, tyre treads?"

"Vaguely," Clara nodded.

"Well, I don't think it was graffiti. I think that that is how those creatures saw us. The impressions we make in two dimensional space. That was them reaching out, attempting to talk. At which point they moved into flattening and dissection. Trying to understand. Trying to emulate."

"So they're treating us like a class project," Minerva crinkled her nose. "But here's the big, winning question. Do they know they're hurting us?"

"What?" Clara incredulously asked. "You think this is all one big _misunderstanding_?"

"Wouldn't be the first time," Minerva shrugged. "We should just ask them."

"And how do we do that?"

"You should have not asked," Liv shook her head at Clara.

Because the answer involved getting Rigsty to set up a step ladder for Clara to climb and sonic the tannoy speakers.

"I hold it! I hold it, Ca-yah," Elias grasped a side of the ladder while Rigsy held it firmly.

"You stay near Rigsy, got it?" Clara needed to know that he understood where he ought to be while she was up.

"Yes…" but Elias' biG eyes drifted to the tables full of different tools.

Clara swore there was a glint of the previous Doctor in those eyes. "Please don't let him get away from the ladder," she told Rigsy.

Rigsy nodded his head. Clara started up the ladder. "So why can't the TARDIS just translate?"

"Because their idea of language is just as bizarre as their idea of space. Even the TARDIS is confused," the Doctor stroked the bit of console.

"What makes this colleague of yours think those monsters even want to talk?" Fenton came up to the ladder.

"I know a race…" the Doctor began going through profiles on the monitor, "Made of sentient gas who throw fireballs as a friendly wave. I know another race with sixty four stomachs who talk to each other by disembowelling…"

"If you continue talking like that I will never kiss you again," Minerva covered his mouth. "And I mean it."

Even Clara had crinkled her nose and told Fenton there was just a hunch behind it.

The Doctor pushed Minerva's hand off him to get the point. "My point being that in a universe as immense and bizarre as this one, you cannot be too quick to judge. Perhaps these creatures don't even understand that we need three dimensions to live in. They may not even know that they're hurting us."

"Do you really believe that?" asked Clara.

"No, but we hope," the Doctor truly meant it. "It would make a nice change, wouldn't it? Okay. Let's start with pi. Even in a flat world they would have circles. I don't mean edible pie, I mean circular pi-"

"Dear, I think that was obvious," Minerva cleared her throat and smiled innocently when he looked at her quite put out. With her smile, she moved to continue his work and motioned him with one hand to get to work as well. "Oh, look," she gazed at the sonic through the monitor which was now flickering, "it's working. The speakers are making noises."

"And the TARDIS is translating now," the Doctor eagerly awaited for the screen to show them the translation. However, it was only a number.

"Fifty-five," Minerva read aloud, a bit disappointed it was turning out to be rather anticlimatic. Oh, was that a Doctor-ish thing now?

"Fifty five? What does that mean?" came Clara's confused voice.

The Doctor racked his brain for anything that matched with the number. "Tenth Fibonacci number. Atomic number of caesium."

"I know what it means," Rigsy called from below. Clara started down the ladder. "We all have numbers on our jackets. Have to sign them out. That was the number on Stan's jacket, the man they flattened in the subway."

"They're gloating," Fenton scowled.

"We don't know that, he needs to stop assuming," Liv crossed her arms at the man. "After all, it could be...an apology…" though she didn't look entirely convinced of her own reasoning.

"Twenty-two," the Doctor read off the next translated bit.

"Twenty two," Clara repeated.

"That's George," Rigsy turned to their watchman at the door.

"Looks like your number's up, George," Fenton called. "Now they're threatening."

"Maybe. Or maybe they're showing us they can read," Clara tried being optimistic but it wasn't being bought.

"Oh, grow up. They're picking targets!"

"Of course you'd see it that way," Rigsy muttered.

"What do you mean by that?" Fenton turned to him.

"These two going to seriously fight at a time like this?" Liv rubbed her face.

"Noying," Elias giggled beside her.

"Why can't they all be like you, hm, El?" Liv smiled down at the boy.

"George?" Clara made a couple steps towards the man who remained suspiciously still and silent.

"Clara, please be careful," Minerva warned through the nanotech.

As Clara moved to one side, she realized that George was already compromised. He was a two dimensional image that dissolved into the wall and floor.

"The tunnel!" she turned around and ran back. She swiped Elias into her arms and ran with the group towards the tunnels. "Minerva, Doctor, they've got George."

"Yes, we saw," Minerva was intently watching the monitor knowing they were once again in danger and her son was there.

"Yes, okay, but what now!?"

"Doctor's working on it," Minerva glanced at the Doctor. He was working rapidly on a small gizmo meant to help out. "Another minute, I suppose?"

"That would be good, yes," the Doctor nodded.

Clara tried handling her side as best as possible, but seeing a door with a flat handle made it a bit difficult. "Another flat handle. They were here. Not now. They've stopped chasing us, I think. It feels like they're cornering us."

"Clara, it's best not to assume by human logic," Minerva warned her. "These are creatures from another dimension."

"She's right," Liv said, making Clara sigh.

"That's three exits all blocked by those creatures," Al put a hand on his head.

Clara could not let anyone panic, even though that's what she was beginning to do inside. "Okay, Rigsy, where's the next exit?"

"The only other one I can think of is where the old line joins the new, but it's a fair walk. Getting through that door would be quicker."

"But we can't, can we?" sneered Fenton.

"I'm just saying," Rigsy frowned.

"Clara, just hang on a minute," Minerva glanced at the Doctor before adding, "The Doctor may have something to help you with the door." She then whispered to the Doctor. "Right? You do, right?"

The Doctor briefly looked up from his work, wearing a look that said a clear 'of course'. "I think I've figured out a way to restore three dimensions. At least on a small scale, say door handles."

Minerva scrunched her nose and turned back to the console where she then spoke to Clara. "So, basically, he's coming up with a de-flattener."

"No," the Doctor's sharp voice interjected before Clara could, "we are _not_ calling it a de-flattener, Minerva."

A smirk spread across Minerva's face. "Yes, a de-flattener."

" _Minerva_ ," the Doctor got up once he was finished with his device and hurried to the small doors to give the device to Clara. "Now Clara, this should be able to restore dimensions. You see what I've called it?" he waited with some smugness for Clara to figure it out.

"Two D is. Two Dee Iz?" Clara read slowly.

Minerva snickered.

The Doctor hung his head, sighing. "No. Twodis. It's called the Twodis-"

Minerva put a hand on his arm. "It's best to let it go, dear."

Clara decided to use the device before the two went into some sort of bickering state. Green rays pulsed out from the tip of the device - a small circle bit - towards the door. Clara, Liv, and even Elias, waited with interest to see if the handle would take its 3D structure back on.

"Boo," Elias said after a long moment of nothing.

"Yeah, not the best," Liv agreed.

Clara returned the device into the TARDIS and flinched at the loud alarm she heard through her nanotech.

"Clara, I don't know how, but they're doing it again. They're leeching the Tardis!" the Doctor was trying to work fast with Minerva to hopefully stop it but it wasn't going too well.

"How?" Clara frowned. "Your doors are closed."

"Well, then they must've changed the frequency!" Minerva exclaimed. "This time it's different!"

Clara quickly turned to the rest of the workers. "Listen, the Doctor thinks we might be in trouble. He thinks they might be close."

"Where, exactly?" Fenton briefly looked around them to see what was supposedly closing in on them.

"I don't know. He's not sure. He's getting readings all around!"

Liv thought that for a second she had seen a shadow in the light, but the lights itself wasn't at the best.

"Oh, that's just great," Fenton shook his head. "Sounds important but means absolutely nothing. Can you tell your friend-" but he didn't get to finish when Al screamed. They only got to see him being dragged into the wall to form yet another mural.

"Oh great, they're moving onto the next stage: 3D. Clara, run!" Minerva shouted.

"How!? The door doesn't work!?" Clara reminded them.

"Oh my God," Liv was pointing at the lumps appearing on the ground, rising into figures. Some of those figures were even ones they knew - like PC Forrest.

"No! No! No!" Elias tried burying his head further into Clara' neck. He really missed his parents.

"Clara-" the Doctor was pushing the device back through the small TARDIS doors again, "-I've boosted the output."

Clara took it in a snap. "And it will work this time?"

"Absolutely."

"C'mon then, El, let's see some pretty lights," Clara bopped the boy gently and pointed the device at the door again. Fortunately, this time it worked and the wheel regained its 3D structure.

Rigsy went to open it fast for them and waited till everyone was in before closing it again.

"Clara, stop. Use it again. It can reverse the process!" the Doctor stopped the brunette from going in any further.

"There's a ladder at the end of this. If we get down into the tunnel, we can make it into daylight," Rigsy called for her to hurry up.

Clara used the device on the wheel again and saw it once again lose its structure. She backed up slowly, letting the device fall back into her purse.

"If it's flat, we're safe now, aren't we?" Fenton asked with a hint of hope in his voice.

"They can't get through, can they?" Rigsy dared to believe the same

"Wait…" Liv nudged Clara to look at the door again. The wheel was beginning to regain its 3D structure slowly.

No one needed to say the word 'run' this time.

"So these creatures can now restore dimensions," Minerva said in a loud huff. "Just let me at them - they're scaring my baby!"

"Well…" the Doctor shifted for her to see the monitor, "...we have a way...but…" Minerva saw the issue and shook her head. "Clara, do you want the good news or the bad news?"

"We're _in_ the bad news! I'm _living_ the bad news!"

"The good news is I've come up with a theoretical way to send them back to their own dimension."

"Do it! Now!"

"And that's the bad news. The TARDIS doesn't have enough dimensional energy to pull it off."

"Apparently these things can pump it out as fast as they can steal it," Minerva muttered.

"Maybe if I ask them really nicely, they'll fill you up again," Clara sarcastically remarked once they'd come to a stop in their run.

"No, no! My TAYIS!" she suddenly heard Elias practically scream.

"Give me that machine!" Fenton had pulled the TARDIS out of her bag.

"NO!" Elias began to cry once again when he saw the stranger taking away the TARDIS with his parents inside.

Rigsy attempted to take the small TARDIS back from Fenton, but their struggle made the box fall into a ventilation shaft.

Clara didn't think she had ever heard Elias cry as loud as he did afterwards. "Okay, okay, okay, they're fine!" she frantically bopped him to no avail. "Doctor? Minerva? Hello?" she spoke for the nanotech, hoping to find them.

"Eugh, I might throw up," she heard Minerva's grouchy answer.

They had landed over a train rail in a very bumpy manner.

Beside Minerva, the Doctor tried getting things back in order but the TARDIS had lost its power now.

"Okay, where are you?" Clara tried again. "Your son is losing it!"

"I don't know. The shields have gone. Structural integrity is failing," the Doctor moved along the console in hopes of finding something still active. "Another blow like that and I've had it."

Minerva went over to the tiny doors and saw their location, or at least part of it. "It looks like we're on the train lines. And...there's a train coming," she closed her eyes for a moment. "Of course there is."

The Doctor growled from his spot. "Short-term re-materialisation? Not enough power. Teleport? Not enough power. Re-route the heart of the TARDIS through - not enough power! Not enough power!"

Minerva turned around with teary eyes. "Is that my baby crying?" she could hear Clara's voice mixing in with Elias' hard cries. Never had she felt like such a useless mother.

"Can't you move the TARDIS!?" Clara spoke in a louder voice to overthrow Elias' cries.

"Clara, there is no power. The TARDIS couldn't boil an egg at the moment. Listen, do what you can to get those people out of there," the Doctor backed up from the console. "You're stronger than you know."

"No, I mean - Elias please calm down," Clara tended to both the toddler and the seemingly clueless parents, "Doctor, I meant, can't you move the TARDIS? Like, Addams Family it?"

"Oh!" Minerva instantly got the reference. "Hands!"

"Clever Girl, let me do it!" the Doctor rushed for the doors. If someone's hand was to be cut off, he preferred it not to be hers. He stuck his hand out the small doors and, with his fingers, walked the entire box over the track and a bit up a slope...all in time before the train passed.

"Ha! Yes!" Minerva cheered as the Doctor closed the door. Soon as he turned she pulled him right to her for a kiss.

However, the train passed by and with a great vibration it knocked the TARDIS over.

From the other side, Clara heard nothing but static...and Elias' cries intensify.

"He's going to lose his voice at this rate," Liv rubbed Elias' back soothingly, cooing him in hopes of getting him to calm down.

"Mommy! Daddy!" Elias repeated over and over, but his parents could no longer hear.

~ 0 ~

The group took down the path of a ladder that led them to the train tracks. Clara had a hard time climbing down with Elias who refused to be held by anyone at this point. Although no longer crying so hard, tears were still running down his small face while he occasionally sniffled.

"We should go," Clara said not a moment after she stepped onto the ground. They couldn't risk staying too long in the place lest they want another shadow to come from the walls.

"And there's another train coming," Fenton sourly gestured to the nearing train.

Clara sighed and moved over with the sonic in hand. She pointed it at the train and used to turn the signal lights from green to red. The driver had no doubt in stepping on the brakes.

~ 0 ~

"Clara," Minerva spoke solemnly, "We, uh, don't know if you can still hear us, but...the TARDIS is now siege mode. No way in, no way out. We managed to turn it on just before the train hit. But there's not enough power left now to turn it off. So, um...well, you know the drill with Elias. Use his bracelet, it'll contact someone on the Monsoon to come for him. Thank you for looking after him." With a long sigh, she turned away and walked to the Doctor who was rubbing his hands to get some warmth.

"There really is no way out," the Doctor repeated, the hint of guilt lacing his words. It would have been a different story if only _he_ was in the TARDIS, but no...his wife was there and she would probably die a little slower than he would thanks to the cold surrounding them.

Minerva took his cold hands in hers and smiled a bit. "Do you want to know a secret?"

"Is it...a dying secret?"

A chuckle escaped through Minerva's lips. "No. See, my secret, is that I think Clara is going to pull something amazing and she's going to save us...just like the Doctor would."

The Doctor smiled at that.

~ 0 ~

"What's going on?" the driver of the train, Bill, called to the group as he climbed down from the train cab. "Why the red light?"

Clara made a face as she tried coming up with a valid train excuse. "MI5. We've got a, er…"

"Blockage. In the tunnel," Fenton said instead.

"Can we ram the blockage? The train's empty, isn't it?" Clara leaned to the side a bit to catch a better look at the train.

The driver came up to them rather confused. "Yeah, it's out of service, but you'd need someone to hold the dead man's handle. Won't run without it." He then waited a moment to see if they were going to come out and say it was a joke. "Is this official? Because I've always wanted to ram something."

"Can we rig it to drive without that? Send it in with no driver?" Clara asked, ignoring the look of joy on Bill's face.

"Clara! Situation over here!" she heard Liv shouting from afar. The train had begun to move forwards, making the group rush over to see who was starting it up.

"Rigsy!" Clara exclaimed upon finding the man inside.

"Clara! Don't!" Liv told the woman just as she boarded the train with Elias.

"Er, what are you doing?" demanded Clara once she was aboard.

"I'm going to ram them, buy you some time," Rigsy gestured to the wheel, thinking it was pretty obvious.

"You'll die," Clara purposely said loudly, also believing it was pretty obvious.

"No," Elias' frail voice came into the conversation. "No die. No!"

"You really want to make a baby cry?" Clara tilted her head to the toddler. "I'm warning you, he's got alien lungs."

Liv appeared in the room with a sigh. "You want to do this because you want to feel important...because you don't."

Rigsy's stare softened at the words. "Just go, okay? Let me do this."

"No, we won't," Liv remained right where she was just as Clara did. "Because you know what? I was like you, when I was alive. And when I died, I died knowing I hadn't done anything right. I'm not letting that happen to anyone else. You still have plenty of years left to do something grand. So get back down there."

Clara smiled at Liv. "Yeah, besides, I've got an idea." She pulled a scrunchie from her bag. "Now tie this around the handle and the bottom control, would you? Elias won't let me go."

"No," Elias grasped her jacket with his small fists and shook his head.

"No driver required," Liv proudly said to Clara.

"And I really like that hair band, but I suppose I'll just take it, will I?" Clara dramatically sighed. "And every time I look at it, I'll remember the hero who died to save it. Come on," she pulled Rigsy with her free hand. "You're not getting off that lightly. There's work that needs doing."

They managed to jump off the train just as it became a mural on the tunnel. They made a run back for their group...when Clara spotted something blue on the ground. Praying for her luck, she stopped and went for the object that seemed to bear weird looking lines...Gallifreyan lines.

"Oh! Elias, look!" she excitedly picked up the small box that now looked more like a cube. "Elias!"

"What is it?" Rigsy asked once they continued to run.

"I think it's the TARDIS," Clara replied.

"Mommy?" Elias languidly reached for the small cube, intending on holding it tightly in his hands. He didn't want anyone else touching it. "Daddy?"

"Yes, Elias, I think it's them," Clara laughed for a moment.

The group took refuge in a disused office they found. While Elias held the TARDIS-cube in his hands, Clara repeatedly tapped on the nanotech hoping to get some signal again.

"Anything?" Liv asked Clara after a moment.

With a sigh, Clara shook her head but she continued to try. "Doctor? Minerva? What would you do now?"

"No," Liv calmly said. "I think the question now is what are _you_ going to do now."

Clara took a breather and thought. "Okay...okay, well...the last thing the Doctor said was that the TARDIS needed energy. He said if it gets energy, he can beat them."

"And…?" Liv anxiously waited for…

"I have an idea," Clara rushed to the desk and put Elias, through a struggle, down on the desk.

"No, Ca-yah! Pick up! Pick up!" he leaned forwards for her to grab him again.

"Elias, look," Clara took his small hands and pointed to the TARDIS, "If we want to save your Mummy and your Daddy, we need to work for a bit. Clara's got a plan, and she needs Elias to hold the TARDIS. Can you do that?"

"...yes, my tayis," Elias pulled the TARDIS to his chest.

"That's the next TARDIS-holder!" Clara ruffled his hair and got to work on her idea. She looked around for the needed paper and swiped a rolled paper. She unrolled it over the desk and put a couple of objects to keep it from rolling back. Moving along the room, she picked up some spray cans.

"Are you okay?" Rigsy was staring at her a bit worried.

"Yeah, are you?"

"I think I will be. What's this?"

"Come on, Graffiti Boy, I've got a commission for you," Clara tossed one of the spray cans at him.

"I'm flattered but I don't think this is exactly the time…"

"Well, fine, if you don't think you're up to it…" Clara waited for a minute until Rigsy felt confident enough.

"What do you need, exactly?"

Clara smirked.

~ 0 ~

"Dere!" Elias cheered after carefully placing the TARDIS-cube over a metal ledge inside the office.

"I'm proud of you, El," Clara smiled at him. She cast a glance at Rigsy, smiling to him as well. "And I'm proud of you too." Rigsy laughed, but the others were scared as hell.

"You're going to get us killed," Fenton snapped at them both for taking this so lightly. "This plan's insane!"

"Shut up," Liv finally appeared to the group, scaring the hell from them except for Rigsy and Clara. "God, just _shut up_!"

Elias giggled in Clara's hands. "Shut up," he repeated.

"They're coming," Bill, the driver, pointed forwards where they could hear some of the noise.

"C'mon, c'mon, c'mon…" Clara once again held Elias tightly in her arms.

~ 0 ~

"Life support is failing…" Minerva drew out a long breath, able to see some of it actually. She had her arms around the Doctor, her head over his, both sitting on the small steps leading to the console. The cold had begun reaching lower, severe temperatures, but of course it didn't affect her. The same could not be said about the Doctor. "Clara, now would be a really good time to do something Doctor-ish."

"You know," the Doctor spoke up in a strained voice, "she did make a mighty fine Doctor."

Minerva smiled. "That she did."

~ 0 ~

"They're doing it," Liv re-appeared in the office after checking up on the enemy. "They're pouring in their energy into the door…" she smirked.

"No it's not working," Fenton grouched at her, over her appearance now. "You've killed us all!"

"Shut up," Elias was the one to say this time. He didn't like the man and he wished his Daddy was here so that he could tell the man to shut up too.

Bill, on the other hand, was attempting to understand the plan here. "This is going to save us? Pumping energy into the wall?"

"No. Not into the wall," Clara shook her head. "Through the wall. Rule number one of being the Doctor. Use your enemy's power against them."

Because TARDIS had been strategically placed right on the other side of the wall from where the energy was being poured into.

"They can't restore three dimensions to a door that never existed," Clara waited anxiously for the TARDIS to gain the required energy.

The small TARDIS began to shake with power, the inside filling with lights that indicated its power was coming back.

Like a springer, the Doctor jumped up. Minerva was pushed back a bit from the force but the Doctor picked her right up.

"You can hold me again a bit," he winked at her and hurried to get the console up and active again. Minerva smirked and went after him to help.

The TARDIS flew off the ledge, changing shape as it flew through the air. It landed in its full, grand size by the facsimile people. With a forcefield around them, the facsimile were pushed back.

"Now let me at them," Minerva said coldly.

The Doctor was on the same page. He hacked into the tunnels' tannoy system to communicate with the creatures. "We tried to talk. I want you to remember that we tried to reach out, we tried to understand you, but I think that you understand us perfectly. And I think you just don't care. And we don't know whether you are here to invade, infiltrate or just replace us. I don't suppose it really matters now. You are monsters. That is the role you seem determined to play. So it seems we must play ours."

Minerva threw the doors opened and stepped out with hands billowing in ice smoke. She thrust a hand forwards and shot ice at the nearest of the creatures. " _That_ is for scaring my baby." She then started shooting at any of the creatures she could get. She was tired of enemies coming for them thinking they could attack anyone they wanted without getting any repercussions. "I will not stand for anyone hurting my baby nor my family."

The Doctor strode out of the TARDIS just as the others began coming down the ladder. "We're going to send you back to your own dimension - those of you left anyways."

Minerva smirked. "And those who manage to survive me and the trip better remember this. You are _not_ welcome here."

"The whole planet is protected by us," the Doctor gave a sideways glanced at Minerva, both matching with smirks. "I am the Doctor…" Clara tossed the sonic from above, at the railway where they all stood, "...and I name you the Boneless."

He zapped the force-field and its pulse of energy effectively disintegrated the 'Boneless' with a squeal.

"Buh-bye," Minerva wiggled her fingers that still billowed some icy smoke.

~ 0 ~

"Who's my adorable, brave baby?" Minerva cooed at her son in her arms.

The Doctor was in the middle of landing the TARDIS right where they had originally started in order to bring Rigsy, Fenton and Bill home. He cast a glance across the console to see his son just taking all the 'Mummy-talk' with giggles and play. It was a mystery whether Elias was just happy to be back with his parents...or if he was just like his father and loved the attention from Minerva.

Maybe it was both…

"You alright?" Clara had to chuckle when they stepped out of the TARDIS and Bill promptly kissed the ground.

"I'm alive and I've been inside that," Bill straightened and threw thumb in the direction of the TARDIS. "I think I'm up on the deal. Come here."

Clara accepted the hug with another laugh.

"My TAYIS," Elias came out happily, now in the Doctor's arms, holding a familiar toy TARDIS in his hands. Soon as he spotted Fenton, though, he pouted and tried shifting as much as he could in his father's arms. " _Mine_ , not his."

"Thank you," Bill said to the two aliens and turned to walk away. He spotted Fenton retying his boot laces but without a trace of any gratitude nor emotion for those they had lost. "You look chipper."

"Do people still say chipper?" Minerva tilted her head. "Or is that some human lingo that I forgot about?"

"Apparently," the Doctor gace a chalant shrug of his shoulders.

"Are you two okay?" Liv appeared by Clara.

"The question is, are you two okay?" Minerva redirected the question to them instead.

"I'm alive," Clara nodded her head.

"But a lot of people died," the Doctor said, knowing she wasn't used to the tragedies that unfortunately followed at times.

"It's like a forest fire, though, isn't it?" Fenton straightened up. "The objective is to save the great trees, not the brushwood. Am I right?"

Minerva narrowed her eyes on the man. "You're despicable."

"C'mon, they were Community Payback scumbags, I wouldn't lose any sleep."

"I'm about to ice you right now," Minerva raised a hand, finishing her warning with some icy smoke. "Leave," she commanded in a matching icy voice.

"You know, after so much time in limbo, overseeing everything...I learned that sometimes the wrong people get to survive," Liv shook her head.

"Unfortunately," Minerva muttered.

"But…" Clara looked at them with a small smile, "we did save the world, right? That's good?"

"We did...but _you_ did," the Doctor clarified.

"Well then I guess I was pretty good Doctor, then?"

"You heard that, did you?" the Doctor said flatly, not too amused.

Clara laughed. Rigsy returned to end the moment and handed back Clara's phone which he had used to make a call to his mother.

"Ah! The return of the fluorescent pudding brain," the Doctor instantly, like an instinct, said.

"Doctor, he can hear you now," Liv put a hand on her forehead.

"Well to be fair he did use fluorescent," Minerva said with some thought into it. "Consider yourself above the rest."

Rigsy's eyes just looked from one alien to the next. "Uh…"

"And," Minerva said again, "your painting was just so good it saved the world. From one artist to the next: excellent job. Can't wait to see what you do next."

Rigsy took the compliment with a shy nod. "It's not going to be easy. I've got a hair band to live up to. Thanks."

Clara saw an extended hand towards her shook her head at him, choosing to hug him instead. Afterwards, Rigsy bid goodbye to the aliens with a wave and walked away.

"Time for a nap," Minerva declared as she pulled Elias from the Doctor.

"Mommy, it's play time," Elias waved the toy TARDIS in his hands.

"Where'd he get that from?" Clara asked, vaguely recalling the toy from when she and Elias gto trapped inside the TARDIS.

"Auntie Amy," Elias hugged his toy.

Liv chuckled. "I remember Amy trying to get that thing painted just right. She wasn't that good of an artist but she got it right in the end."

"Ca-yah, play time?" Elias asked hopefully.

Clara smiled and pointed at herself. "Oh, you want to play with me?"

"Yes!"

"Well, it looks you've finally gotten on his good side again," the Doctor remarked with some pride. Elias had turned out to hold grudges just like someone he knew…

"Elias, Mommy said it was nap time, remember?" Minerva tapped the toddler on the nose.

"Noooo…" Elias pouted, still shaking the toy, "...it's play time with Ca-yah. Nap time later."

"I can put him to bed after we play for a bit," Clara volunteered, giving Minerva a significant look to allow them to spend a bit more time together.

"Fine," Minerva caught a whiff of it and gave in. "But don't you have a date with Danny Pink or something?"

"I can be fashionably late," Clara said and held her hands out for Elias. "Now give me that adorable alien baby."

"Yes!" Elias leaned forwards and allowed Clara to take him. "Bye Mommy, bye Daddy," he waved his small fingers at his parents while Clara walked into the TARDIS with him.

Liv laughed and disappeared inside as well.

"Ah," Minerva put her hands on her hips and huffed. "So I'm being traded in...for a woman? I thought that wasn't supposed to happen till...hundreds of years later."

The Doctor contained his laugh as best he could. "You know…" he stepped closer to her, arm reaching around her waist, "...if Clara wants to put Elias to bed, then maybe we could get back to that 'holding' bit I said earlier?"

Minerva raised an eyebrow at him. "Ooh...I might be interested…"

The Doctor leaned down and kissed her for a moment, then making a promise to definitely make it worthwhile for her.

~ 0 ~

Somewhere off, a dark-haired woman overlooked the entire scenes of the tunnels, specifically when the Doctor and Minerva had reappeared with the TARDIS.

"Excellent," the woman said in pure satisfaction. Her expressions lit up even more when Minerva had begun to ice down the Boneless. "Oh, how you have changed..." a light breath escaped through the woman's lips, "I can't wait to see you again."

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Hello, hello! Merry belated Christmas and New Years! I've been on vacation and it was finally time to come back home (sadly lol). We're nearing the end of this story people .

 **For the Review:**

I mean, I would like to believe that so far I've written these two aliens as people who love both Clara and Liv? I don't know, I've written Face the Raven already and I can promise you it's not all about "let's just try to save Clara so that Liv will be okay". You'll have to wait and see what happens with that one ;)


	10. Into the Forest

"And this one?"

"Twenty-two," Elias read off a flashcard held to him by his grandfather. He then reached for his teddy bear Roger but Mayar pulled the bear away. "Grandpa, I want Roger!"

"We have to finish this," Mayar wagged a finger. "One more for grandpa, hm? And then Elias gets a very tasty treat."

Elias' eyes widened with delight. "Next! Next!" he clapped his hands so that the next flashcard could be given.

Mayar had himself a chuckle as he recalled the same way he used to get Elias' mother to continue the lessons. "Okay, what about this number?" he held now a flashcard with '50' written on it. "Can you tell me this number? It's okay if you don't-"

"Fifty!" Elias read off without so much of a struggle, leaving Mayar to gape for a while.

"Well I'll be damned…"

"Treat! Treat!" Elias began to chant, once again clapping. "Where's my teat, grandpa?"

Mayar shook his head to get rid of the stupor and called for the guard in the room. "Get him the usual," he ordered.

"Hurry!" Elias called as the guard began to leave, missing the amused smile from the guard.

A minute later, Minerva and the Doctor walked into the room. Both had taken a lovely stroll through the Monsoon kingdom as a date.

"How are the lessons going?" Minerva didn't think they would make much progress on Elias' education considering he really was only two years old. But Mayar insisted that starting early was the best way to get Elias ready.

After all, one day...Elias was to take the throne.

Minerva doubted Elias would, honestly. Although he was only two years old, he showed far more desire in travelling than taking up a royal throne. In that, he probably resembled his father who - up to the present day - still refused to be called 'King'. The Doctor would often say that perhaps Elias was not destined to be the next heir but in fact...one of his younger siblings was…

The Doctor still hoped for that little girl.

Minerva laughed and dismissed the idea...though sometimes she did wonder if the next heir was to be another Queen.

Mayar handed Roger back to Elias and then got up from his chair to speak with his parents. "Your son is a genius."

"Well," the Doctor gave a smug tilt of his head.

"He is definitely Minerva's son," Mayar finished with a smirk while the Doctor's smugness fell from his face.

"Grandfather," Minerva playfully scolded, knowing that of course Mayar was only kidding.

"Elias is showing remarkable development in almost all aspects," Mayar went on to explain seriously. "He knows far more than a Moontsay child would at his age and, according to the Doctor-" Mayar gestured to the Time Lord, "-Elias is also showing to be more advanced than a Time Lord child."

"He is," the Doctor confirmed with a small nod.

"He is truly the best of both species," Mayar said, incredibly proud.

"And his powers?" Minerva inquired. "Are there signs that...he's going to develop any of our elements?"

"It's too early for that, I'm afraid," Mayar admitted. "We won't know if Elias will inherit all of your powers till he's a teenager."

Minerva nodded her head, still incredibly proud of her son. He was so innocently playing with his teddy bear without realizing what greatness he was already showing at his young age.

Elias picked himself up and ran for his parents. "I did good!" he cheerfully tried informing his parents of all the lessons he had done with his grandfather.

When his words started turning into long babbles, the Doctor picked up the toddler up and laughed. "You did perfect, Elias. I think maybe we can start working on your algorithms. Hopefully it'll go better than it did with your mother."

An incredulous expression worked its way across Minerva's face. "Excuse me?"

"Uh oh," Elias covered his eyes with his hands, letting Roger drop between him and the Doctor's arms.

"Well, darling, you know I love you but...your math was never good…"

Minerva gaped. Mayar laughed as he returned to his desk.

"Kaeya always pretended to be sick during math lessons. That or she would just find a way to get out of them."

The Doctor took on a smug look and walked out of the room.

"Thanks for the help, grandfather!" Minerva huffed at Mayar before going after her husband.

~0~

Elias ate his tasty, promised treat in the TARDIS and watched his parents go round and round at the console talking...or bickering...or bantering…

He looked down at Roger say next to him and pushed some of his treat to the bear's face.

"Elias, Roger does not eat pastries," Minerva called without even looking at the toddler in question. Her eyes were glued to the Doctor across. "Doctor, I cannot believe you think it's my fault that math was unteachable to me."

"Minerva, I don't think 'unteachable' is a real word…" the Doctor trailed off when he saw the look of fury cross her eyes.

"Do you really want to poke at my language?"

With a sigh, the Doctor shook his head. "Now you know that when I tried to teach you recreational math it never worked out."

"Because of _me_?" Minerva pointed at herself, growing even more incredulous. It became even more so when the Doctor nodded. "Doctor, Doctor, Doctor…" she started walking up to him, "...are we forgetting that many of the times you taught me...certain things got in the way…" the Doctor watched her fingers crawl up to his lips, "...remember?"

"Uh…"

A wide smirk graced Minerva's lips. "Don't be so quick to blame me for our failed attempts, dear." She withdrew her fingers and backtracked to where she originally stood.

The knock on the doors was like the winning bell. Before Minerva turned, Elias had jumped from his spot.

"I'm coming!" he exclaimed and dropped the remainder of his treat on the floor.

"I'm sorry, are we expecting anyone besides Clara?" Minerva mused and looked at the Doctor who was in the same predicament. It was a bit early for Clara and Liv to be by. Plus, they had a key.

"I'm coming!" Elias hopped with a pastry-covered hand high over his head.

"Probably a girl he has around," the Doctor laughed to himself and went over to help the toddler.

"I don't think so," Minerva crossed her arms. "Don't even joke about that!"

"Okay, c'mon," the Doctor picked up Elias, careful not to get covered in pastry himself, and opened the door.

They found a small dark-haired girl in a Coal Hill uniform standing on the other side. "I'm lost. Please, can you help me?"

"It's that way," the Doctor pointed in some direction without much attention and shut the door on the girl. Just as he turned away from the doors, the scenery outside registered in his mind. He quickly turned back and opened the door again, and thankfully the girl was still there. "Are those trees?"

The girl didn't seemed bothered that the door had been closed on her face. "I need the Doctor. Are you the Doctor?"

"Yes. Do you have an appointment? You need an appointment to see the Doctor."

"No pointment," Elias put his pastry-covered hand over the Doctor's mouth. "Shh, Daddy."

Minerva laughed behind.

"Please, something's chasing me," the girl revealed and ended all jokes inside the box.

The Doctor pushed Elias' hand from his mouth, spitting out the little bits of pastry left over, and pulled the girl inside the TARDIS. Her eyes widened when she saw the actual size of the interior. The Doctor put Elias down, allowing the toddler to run back to his teddy bear and treat on the floor, and began to explain to the young girl...or at least tried to anyways.

"When you drink a glass of Coke, it's only this big, but it's actually got this much sugar in it. It works a bit like that."

The girl hadn't even seen the Doctor use hand gestures to explain. She looked at the console which had dim, flashing lights. "What does?"

"The Tardis. It's bigger on the inside than the outside, or did you not notice?"

"I think she did, dear, but she just didn't care," Minerva walked where Elias had plopped down on and began scooping up his pastry off the floor before he had the idea to eat it.

"I just thought it was supposed to be bigger on the inside, so I didn't say anything," the girl explained for her lack of excitement.

The Doctor had gone over to the gallery to retrieve a map of London. He wasn't sure if the place was the right one since it was apparently covered in trees and bushes. He unrolled the map on a table and examined it for their location. "Well, of course it's supposed to be bigger. Most people are confused by that."

"Or scared," Minerva finished picking up the pastry and promptly threw it in a small bag which she kept near the console for situations like those. Elias was just like his father, he didn't care where his food was - he'd eat it anyways!

"I find everything confusing, nearly," the girl said. "So, I don't say anything."

"But then how would you learn?" Minerva turned to her, curiously studying the girl. She looked no more than nine or ten years old and Minerva was sure this was the time when children asked the most questions. It was natural - they were curious of everything!

The girl didn't understand what Minerva was talking about. And so, just like she had said, she didn't ask for clarification. She just moved on. "I thought Miss Oswald told me to find the Doctor. But it wasn't her. It was just in my head."

"Miss Oswald?" the Doctor looked up from the map. The girl raised her head to the second floor to meet the Doctor's gaze. "Dark hair? Highly unpredictable? Surprisingly round face?"

"It is rather surprisingly round, isn't it…?" Minerva mumbled under her breath, now thinking specifically on the shape of Clara's head.

"Everyone says she's in love with Mister Pink," the girl remarked.

"The PE teacher," the Doctor recalled the man he still wasn't entirely convinced was right for Clara.

The girl nodded her head. "Maths. I really like him. I was in his group."

The Doctor snorted and closed the map as if he just discovered the reason behind the problem. "Mister Pink was looking after you? Well, that explains why you're lost."

"Doctor," Minerva said in a higher voice meant to remind him they were supposed to be nice to Clara's boyfriend.

The Doctor meant what he said and he would stick by it. As he came down to the console, he noticed the girl hadn't even flinched at the mysterious, clearly alien, technology that surrounded her. "It doesn't surprise you that we know all about your school?"

The girl gave a languid shrug of her shoulders. "Everyone seems to know everything about everything, apart from me."

"Now that's why you have to ask questions," Minerva bent down in front of the girl. "Otherwise, how will you learn?"

The girl gave a mere blink of her eyes in return.

Minerva noticed there was something off in the look of the girl. She hadn't forgotten the reason why the girl was in the TARDIS in the first place. "Now when you say 'just inside my head'-" but the terrestrial navigation on the console spoke up to announce they were indeed at their desired destination.

"No, we haven't," the Doctor frowned. "We're supposed to be in the middle of London."

 _"You have reached your destination."_

"Oh, stop saying that!"

The girl moved beside Minerva, still calm despite all she was seeing. "She's only saying it because it's true. We _are_ in the middle of London."

"But...but there's _trees_ ," the Doctor glanced back at the doors. "We are in the middle of a forest."

"Come and see," the girl held her hands out for the two.

Seeing the chances to go outside rising, Elias jumped from his spot, teddy bear in hand. "Me! Me! I want to go!" he rushed straight for the doors.

"Oh no," Minerva ran after him. "You need a change first, mister sweet-face! Look at you!" Elias fussed when she picked him up. "Go and take a look," she instructed the Doctor as she headed for the corridors. "I'm gonna go get this one cleaned up."

The Doctor gave a nod and allowed the young girl beside him to lead him for the doors. Once again, he found the entire place filled with trees as if they were in the middle of the Amazon.

"Nelson's Column. Do you like it?" the girl looked up at him.

"Do I...sorry, what?" the Doctor was still trying to get over the new environment.

"Do you like the forest being in Trafalgar Square? I think it's lovely."

The Doctor looked out and spotted a Landseer bronze lion statue followed by a tall Corinthian column not too far away. There was more statues and columns but most were being overrun by leaves and ivy.

Well, he could begin to see bits of actual London peeking up into the sky.

He quickly turned around and pulled the girl back inside the TARDIS, making sure to lock the doors behind them. There was something clearly wrong with the city, or the entire planet for that matter. He needed to conduct some research first in order to understand. And while he did that research, the young girl stood beside him doing nothing but stare.

By the time Minerva returned with a clean and changed Elias, the Doctor had come up with nothing for their problem. Elias pulled his hand from Minerva's to climb down the stairs on his own. Though as he used both his hands to grab onto the rail's vertical bars, his teddy bear was left hanging between them.

"Is it tree time?" he asked, still very excited to go out and see all the trees.

"No, no it is not," called the Doctor without looking up from the console.

Elias huffed just as he reached the last step. "It _is_ tree time."

"So, what do we have?" Minerva walked up to the console till she stood behind the Doctor and the girl.

"Nothing!" the Doctor exclaimed, frustrated.

"Did you at least call Clara to inform her we have one of her students…" Minerva trailed off when she realized they still didn't know the girl's name. "Sweetheart, what was your name?"

"Maebh," the girl responded politely.

"We have to tell Clara we have Maebh with us," Minerva said to the Doctor.

The Doctor rolled his eyes and moved for the phone. He didn't want to waste time calling Clara but he did concede someone should know where the missing student was.

"Elias, get away from the door," Minerva shouted for her son who was busy hopping to reach the door's handle.

"I want to see trees!"

"In time, Elias," Minerva playfully rolled her eyes.

"Clara-" but the Doctor barely got the name in when Clara interrupted him, apparently very excited over something.

"Guess what? You're always showing me amazing things. Well, I, Doctor, have finally got something amazing to show you!"

The Doctor was not in the mood to entertain whatever she thought was exciting. "Yes, well, there are some things I've never seen, but that's usually because I've chosen not to see them...or Minerva doesn't let me."

"Oh, Doctor-" Clara laughed, "-you're going to love this-"

"Well, when you come to collect this child, you can tell us then."

"Huh?" Clara's excitement faltered. "What child?"

"Young female human. Standard defenseless little girl-"

"Doctor," Minerva once again scolded lightly. Maebh didn't seem to take offence judging by the gaze she had on them.

"Your friend Mister Pink was supposed to be looking after her," the Doctor finished explaining to Clara. "Her name's Maebh."

"What? Maebh!? Where are you!?"

"Trafalgar Square. We found her wandering around the brand new forest."

"Brand new forest?"

"Yes. It's like the new Forest, except even newer."

"Is that the forest that's covering London?" there was a hint of disappointment in Clara's voice.

The Doctor, on the other hand, was amused. "Was that the amazing thing you were going to show us?"

"Oh, did she think we hadn't yet seen the forest?" Minerva playfully rolled her eyes. "We're not blind, she does know that right?"

"Tell Minerva I heard that," Clara first said sharply. "And can you bring Maebh over?"

"No, I can't," the Doctor said. "

"Give me that," Minerva dnatched the phone from him before he made it sound like they just didn't want to help Clara.

"Oh c'mon!" Clara was in the middle of her answer. "You've got a spaceship. All we've got are Oyster cards."

"Why do you have oyster cards?" Minerva crinkled her nose.

"That's not the point!"

"Okay, fine. Look, we just want to find out what is going on and the TARDIS is having a little problem getting through. The forest is interfering with her tech. It would just be easier if you came by. You have a compass don't you?"

Clara sighed deeply, clearly annoyed Minerva was once again going off topic. "Yes, we do have a compass."

"Great! Then we'll see you at Tafangular square!" Minerva hung up and turned to the Doctor. "She's got a compass, she'll be fine."

~0~

"It's not good, is it?" Liv asked as soon as Clara was hung up on. With the face Clara gave in return, Liv got the jist.

The two walked back into the museum where the rest of the class was waiting for further instructions. It was quite the sight to wake up to an infestation of a forest.

Danny walked up to Clara the moment he saw her, and Liv who now openly showcased her appearance to him. The class did not see Liv at all. "What did they say?"

"Who?" Clara blinked.

"I think he meant the parents…" Liv read off Danny's face as it slowly grew irritated.

"Don't tell me you didn't call the school," he now looked at Clara hard.

"Um…" Clara's eyes did her fast blinking when she tried coming up with a quick response.

"You called them," Danny concluded and both women saw his annoyance skyrocket.

"No, they called me, actually," Clara clarified first and foremost. "I can't stop them calling me, can I?"

"You shouldn't have to," Liv said sharply. "Because it shouldn't matter," she said that with eyes on Danny. She knew it was hard for humans to accept Clara's way of life but she felt like Danny was taking it farther than needed. It was a macho territorial mind of thing and she honestly didn't understand why Clara didn't put a stop to it already.

"I thought you weren't in contact," Danny accused of Clara's lie.

"London has just been taken over by a gigantic forest. Who do you want to talk to, Monty Don?" Clara nearly had a laugh there. Where we his priorities?

"I want to do my job, which is looking after these kids," Danny gestured to the current class behind.

Clara snorted. "Oh, really? How many kids?"

"What?"

"Where's Maebh Arden?"

Though Danny found the question out of place, he played along and searched for the girl.

"She's with the Doctor and Minerva," Clara decided to put him out of his nervous state after a minute...or two.

"What?" Danny nearly lost it there. "No, no, no, no, no. Maebh is a vulnerable kid! She's on medication. She's had an emotional trauma. Have they even been CRB checked?"

"I will remind you that they do have a son," Liv said slowly, in case Danny truly had forgotten. "They know what they're doing."

But somehow, Danny still found no comfort.

~0~

"I can help!" Elias stomped his small foot on the ground, hopelessly looking up at his father who was standing on the lion's plinth scanning the trees with the sonic screwdriver.

Minerva held his free hand (as the other one held his teddy bear) and simply shook her head. "I will send you back in the TARDIS mister if you throw me a tantrum."

Elias cast a glance back at the TARDIS and shook his head fast. "No thank you!"

Minerva smirked. Out of the corner of her eye she watched Maebh to see how she was holding up and was glad to see the girl more entertained with her phone than wanting to also 'help' the Doctor.

"Why would there be no reading?" the Doctor decided to end his sonicking. "Because they are actually made of wood. No circuits. No mechanism. Wood." He huffed and jumped down to the ground.

"I could have saved you a lot time," Minerva told him as he walked back to them.

"I wanted to see if there was something inside the trees!"

Maebh looked up from her phone and curiously watched him fiddle with his sonic. "What's that for?"

"This is a sonic screwdriver," the Doctor gave it a twirl in his fingers. "It interacts with any form of communication you care to mention. Sadly, trees have no moving parts and don't communicate."

"They communicate a bit, though…" Maebh thoughtfully said, glancing upwards to the tall trees.

"What?"

"Otherwise they wouldn't all grow at the same time, would they?"

"Like a Facebook group message on Tree Facebook?" Minerva tilted her head, on the verge of laughing. "That's a new way to think of how Spring begins."

The Doctor scoffed at the idea. "So, what, do you think that's how spring begins? With a group message on Tree Facebook? Do you think they send texts to each other?"

"You don't need a phone to communicate, do you. I haven't phoned home, and I know my mum is worried about me," Maebh gave a short shrug of her shoulders. Beside her, Minerva smiled. She loved this little girl's attitutde.

"Can we do more vestigating?" Elias was hopefully looking up at both his parents. "I climb trees!"

Minerva's smile had turned into a glare for the Doctor. _You see what you teach him? Climbing trees_. _Way to go Doctor._.

"Ah," came a long drawl from the Doctor, clearly offended. "Let me remind you that _you_ were the one to climb trees in this relationship my darling."

Elias giggled. "Mommy, you climb trees?"

If Minerva had been glaring before, now she was throwing daggers at the Doctor. With a cheeky smile, the Doctor went off into the forest.

"Oh I'm gonna get you…" Minerva shut the TARDIS door behind them and grabbed Maebh's hand as well. The three then followed after the Doctor, Minerva ignoring Elias' repeated questions over her climbing of trees.

~ 0 ~

"I can see the TARDIS!" Liv called to Clara as the group of students and two teachers walked through the Trafalgar square. Clara felt a big relief when she saw the blue box.

"Trafalgar Square. Well done, Bradley," Danny complimented the student that had led them to the spot with a compass. "Excellent navigation skills."

"Ah ha! There it is. All sorted now!" Clara hurried for the TARDIS. "Come on!"

"Can we take a picture with the lion, sir? Please?" one of the students, Bradley, asked Danny.

"Er, stay together, but okay," Danny gave a nod.

"I cannot believe Bradley just said please," Clara almost had a laugh.

"Really?"

"Yeah. He usually prefers other means of persuasion."

"Yeah, _rude_ ones," Liv remarked. "And Ruby."

"You bring out the best in them," Clara said to Danny.

There was a loud rumble that shook them all, even making the tallest column dangerously sway. One student, Ruby, who'd been trying to climb a tree slid down from it and broke a branch in the process.

"Ow!" she hissed for a moment but then cast it off like nothing. She came back to her teachers holding the branch up. "Look, sir. No rings," she tapped the clear, not-lined part of the branch. "Trees usually have rings to tell you how old they are. This one's got no rings. Why's that then, sir?"

But Danny didn't answer.

"The rings mark the years of growth. One ring for each year," the Doctor appeared from behind. "This grew up overnight. That whole tree is the result of just one night's growth, and they're still growing."

"Mine!" Elias came running out from the forest holding a pine cone in his hand.

"Elias!" Minerva came soon after, slightly out of breath from chasing him. "Put that down! It's got bugs!"

Elias' eyes widened for a moment as he lifted the pine cone to inspect. But, just like that, he grinned. "Mine too!"

Minerva groaned and put her hands on her hips. Her eyes flickered to the students and let a small "oh" out. "Do we have company?"

Clara rolled her eyes and moved to introduce the class to the foreigners. "Everyone, this is the Doctor and Minerva, and they're going to sort everything out."

Elias threw the pine cone at her feet, huffing. "And me!"

Clara amended. "Right, yes, with the help of Elias of course."

"That's me!" the toddler raised a hand, all happy now that it was set clear he would also help.

"Isn't that the boy who took your Jane Austen book?" one of the students murmured to the next.

Elias' excitement faded and was replaced with a big scowl. "Go 'way!" he ordered them.

"Do not be rude, El," Minerva warned him but the boy huffed and looked away from the students.

"Right, so, is there any good news on this?" Clara turned to the Doctor, hopeful that at least some kind of plan was already brewing in his head.

"Well, having looked at things, I think, probably, the answer to that is no," the Doctor released a big sigh of annoyance.

Clara didn't want the kids to panic thinking nothing would he done to save them from the trees. "He always says that. He's really clever!" she assured them.

"Oh, yes, I am. Very clever," the Doctor agreed, not about to waste a praise on him. "But what use is clever against trees? They don't listen to reason. You can't plead with them. You can't lie to them. They have no moving parts, no circuits. This is a natural event."

Danny made a face. "How can it be natural for a tree to grow in one night?"

"It's what they said about the Ice Age," Minerva turned around, now holding Elias by the hand. "How can whole glaciers just pop up out of nowhere?" she mimicked a voice. "Well, they just did, didn't they?"

"That's how this planet grows - a series of catastrophes. Farewell to the Ice Age," the Doctor waved a hand to the sky. "Welcome to the Tree Age. Possibly. When the Ice Age was here, you lot managed to cook mammoth. Now there's a forest, you'll just have to eat nuts."

"I can't eat nuts. I've got an allergy," Bradley crinkled his nose.

"Don't worry. It's a thing they do," Clara said before they worried. "They pretend they're not interested and then they have an idea. They're playing for time."

"Time," the Doctor pointed at her all of a sudden. "Interesting."

Clara inwardly sighed of relief. "See?" she called to the students again. "Clever kicking in."

"A tree is a time machine. You plant a little acorn in 1795, and in the year 2016, there's an oak tree, there, in the same spot, with a tiny little bit of 1795 still alive inside of it," the Doctor rambled on. "You can't create an overnight forest with extra special fertiliser. You have to mess with the fabric of time. And communicate with trees."

Minerva unlocked the TARDIS in time as the Doctor ran for it. She gently pushed Elias inside and followed in.

"So you're saying it's an act of aggression?" Clara concluded as she went up to the console behind them. Danny and the rest of the students did the same.

"By trees?" even Minerva was a little cold against the idea.

"Er, trees clean the air," Ruby reminded.

"Exactly," Clara pointed. "Well done, Ruby. Someone or something who's trying to scrub the atmosphere before colonising or invading."

"Uh, Clara…" Liv appeared sitting on the rail, apparently highly amused.

Clara turned to see the children beginning to wander about in the room, poking here and there while the Doctor was trying his best not to lose it.

"Ah, yes, Doctor, Minerva. Ahem. This is Coal Hill Year Eight Gifted and Talented Group," Clara introduced the kids to them.

One of the students had made it up the stairs and was leaning closer to the walls. "What are the round bits for?"

The Doctor shook his head and rushed to the small staircase. "Ask your teacher. Come on! Down from there!" He ushered the student down the stairs and then spotted a couple more students pushing controls on the console and turning several of the levers. "Hey! Away from the console. Come on. That's an antique. Get away from there! Don't touch that!"

Elias giggled and tugged on his mother's hand. "My turn?"

"Elias, don't you even dare!" the Doctor turned around with a pointed finger at him. They had Elias very trained to understand the console was only for adults. He would get his turn when he was much, _much_ older.

Minerva was close to laughing beside him. "I'm curious though," she began in an effort to distract herself, "Haven't any of you been struck by the fact that it's bigger on the inside?"

Ruby stopped by on her way down to the lower lever near the front door. "There wasn't a forest. Then there was a forest. Nothing surprises us anymore."

Minerva raised her eyebrows. "Well."

"These trees all appeared at once. That wasn't a coincidence. There's no such thing as an arboreal coincidence," the Doctor began like everyone understood him. "Something, someone has coordinated this. To coordinate, you need to communicate. Every communication channel on the Tardis is open, and nothing." As he walked around the console, he saw Danny looking at a children's exercise books Clara left behind."Except. Let me see that!" he didn't actually wait for Danny to give an 'okay' and just took the book from him. He passed many pages and found the drawings were all the same. It was a sun releasing waves of energy at the tree tops.

"Homework books. Why are these here?" Danny glanced at the rest of the same books sitting nearly on the console chair.

"Maebh Arden. Maebh Arden. Which one is Maebh Arden?" the Doctor looked up from the book once he remembered the little girl from earlier.

Minerva, too, remembered the child and looked around. "Well, she was with us. When Elias ran away, I told her to follow...and she did."

"Oh, my God. Maebh's gone. Maebh's lost in the forest. Maebh's going to die!" Ruby panicked.

"Ruby, that's enough! Doctor?" Clara tried stopping the Time Lord during his pace.

"We've got to find her!"

"Yes, I know that we have to find her!" Clara stopped him by the console. "Doctor, listen to me. Her sister went missing last year. She's on medication. The child is barely functioning. She hears voices. She's very vulnerable."

"What do the voices say?" Minerva asked, vaguely recalling something Maebh had said about voices as well.

Clara shrugged. "I don't know. She takes tablets and they stop."

The expressions on both Minerva and the Doctor were simultaneous and annoyed.

"Do you see why I don't ever want my son to be taught on this planet?" Minerva gestured as she spoke to the Doctor. "They're all hell bent on keeping them the same."

The Doctor agreed. Anything Elias learned would be from them or from the Monsoon. Humans were so inclined to make sure everything was 'normal' with every child that they didn't even think to embrace something unique. "You people. You never learn. If a child is speaking, listen to it!"

"Oh, like you listened to her?" Danny challenged, reminding them where Maebh was not at the moment.

The Doctor ignored the question and focused on the monitor. He saw a large solar prominence flaring off the sun itself.

"He's right. She was trying to tell me something and I ignored her. Maebh Arden is tuned to a different channel. She can lead us to the source, to the heart of the forest. We have to listen to her. We have to find her."

Clara shook her head when he pulled the sonic out. "Not everything can be fixed with a screwdriver. It's not a magic wand."

"Are we doubting the sonic?" Minerva made a face and joined them on the other side of the console. "You know we do not play when it comes to children." She wiggled Elias' hand still in hers.

"Does she have a phone?" the Doctor asked Clara.

"Well, yes, she does."

"Have you got the number?"

"Er, yep," Clara pulled her phone out and let the Doctor sonic it.

"Maebh Arden. Five hundred yards south east of here. I'll go get her."

"I'll go with him!" Danny volunteered since the girl had been originally in his group. Therefore, it was his responsibility to make sure she was back in his custody safe and sound.

"Or perhaps it's better if you and Clara stay to look after your students," Minerva's voice stopped both men from going out.

Clara whirled around with a big frown on her face. "Aw, but I can go help. Maebh is a fragile-"

"Yes, we heard," Minerva nodded but Clara was not finished.

"She needs a teacher and I'm that teacher!" Clara pointed at her and the Doctor. "So I'm going!"

"Fine," Minerva rolled her eyes. She pulled Elias into a walk for the doors where the Doctor was now waiting for them.

Before Clara followed, Danny stopped her with a small accusation. "You haven't seen them for months?"

Clara's eyes flickered to the side for a second. "Something like that."

Liv appeared behind the two, only visible for Clara. "Remind me again why we're still in this lie?" Clara acknowledged she was there but didn't reply.

"You didn't even say hello. You just sprung straight into action," Danny continued with Clara. "I would have figured at least the little kid would've been so surprised to see you yet-"

The Doctor ran back inside like he'd just remembered something. "Hey!" he called to the children who were getting busy with selfies. "Do not. Touch. Anything. Anything. H-h-okay?"

"Okay," Ruby gave a shrug.

"See?" Clara started backtracking to the doors. "Someone needs to go. Child protection and all."

~ 0 ~

"Mommy, Roger," Elias realized he'd forgotten his teddy bear back in the TARDIS and was repeatedly trying to turn back for the TARDIS.

"It's too far now, El. I'm sure the kids are taking good care of him," Minerva passified, or at least thought, his concerns.

Elias gasped at the idea of some other kids holding Roger. "No! He's mine!"

"Terrible two's and the awful 'mine' stage," Minerva shook her head, deciding to pull Elias up to her arms instead.

"Are the kids going to be okay?" Clara asked the Doctor. It didn't occur to her until then that maybe leaving them in the TARDIS may not have been the best idea.

"They're in the Tardis, the safest place on the planet," the Doctor said, now casting Minerva and Elias a glance. It would've been far better if the two stayed in the TARDIS to be safe.

Another rumble forced them to stop. However, the violent rumble made the nearest statue fall on its side, nearly crushing them if they hadn't jumped out of the way.

"If this is an invasion…"

'What?" Clara's eyes snapped on the Doctor again.

"It's over," Minerva finished for him, sitting straight up with Elias on her lap. "They're already here and they've won."

"Question is-" the Doctor got up and then helped Minerva and Elias, "what do they want?"

"Million dollar question, innit?" Liv popped in.

The group continued their hunt for Maebh but unfortunately came across with nothing. Clara worried about the kids being left in the TARDIS with Danny, feeling a bit guilty she'd just ran out on Danny like that.

"Doctor? Look behind us," Clara stopped by to glance back. "The path we just walked down. It's overgrown already."

"Mommy! I win!" Elias had cheered when he spotted a pink phone on the ground. He ran forwards, passing his father on the way who'd yet to see the small thing. Elias picked up the phone and tried swiping his little fingers across the screen like he usually saw people do.

"Yes you do win," the Doctor hurried over and picked Elias up.

Clara rushed with Minerva beside. "Why would she put her phone down?" the former inquired, feeling her heartbeat picking up.

"Maybe she doesn't want to be followed," Minerva theorized. "Or maybe she lost a hold of it in a struggle? Or-" she grew excited at her last theory that'd just popped into her head, "-it was left as a clue, so we would know where she was going! Oh I really hope it's that one!"

"Trail of breadcrumbs. Hansel and Gretel," Liv nodded her head but then felt her own heart beating up. "Clara, I can feel you're frightened."

"No, I never get frightened," Clara had her own hand over her chest, trying to decipher her feelings at the moment. "Why am I frightened?"

"You just lost a little girl," the Doctor turned back.

"Yes, that is a worry, but I know you'll find her," Clara waved it off. "No, no, no. This is not a worry, this is a dread. Maebh!"

"You're pursuing a little lost girl through a mysterious forest," the Doctor continued with his frighten theory. "The path has disappeared. You find yourself with a strangely compelling masculine figure-"

"Maebh!" Clara didn't wait for the full explanation. "Any minute now we're going to find a gingerbread cottage with a cannibal witch inside. Maebh!"

"Strangely compelling masculine figure?" Minerva walked up to the Doctor. "Really?"

"Mhm," the Doctor nodded, smiling at himself.

"Picure time?" Elias waved the phone in his hand.

"Let's go!" Clara called to them impatiently.

This time, they followed her through the forest. They came across a small clearing where Clara had found another object of Maebh's: a pencil case.

"That's hers innit?" Liv was right beside Clara when the brunette picked up the case.

"Coal Hill," Clara smiled just a bit.

"Clever girl," Minerva said once they'd caught up with Clara. "I like her style."

Clara agreed it was a good tactic that she was surprised with. She strode past a bus stop and pushed a branch out of the way only to be blocked by a figure in a hazmat suit.

"Get back!" the man startled her. "We're burning here. Stay back!"

"We're looking for a little girl-" Clara tried to explain.

"Stay back. We're about to burn!"

"Best to just follow," Liv reached for Clara's arm. The group watched as the man along with several others set to use a flame thrower on a part of the forest. Despite the fire successfully started, it didn't last long. It was as if the trees were flame proof.

"Magic?" Elias looked at his father who held him.

"No, El, I don't think it's magic," the Doctor smiled lightly. Elias had gotten in the habit of trying to make his own conclusions. He and Minerva tried to gently correct Elias when his conclusions weren't all the way truthful.

Seeing Maebh wasn't in the area anyways, the group left behind the hazmats.

"Trees control the oxygen on this planet so if they withhold it, they smother the fire," Minerva was relaying, a growing smile on her face. "Now _that_ is my sort of forest. It's all... _clever_."

"What sort of forest has its own in-built fire extinguisher?" Liv gave her a look.

"What do they want?" Clara thought was a better question.

"Why _now_?" the Doctor corrected.

Elias leaned forwards to see Minerva, Clara and Liv, and decided to join in the questions. "Why?" he proudly asked.

Clara smiled at the boy. "But what do you mean 'why now?'" she asked from the Doctor.

"The whole natural order is turning against this planet. But why? Why now?"

"Well, what else?"

The Doctor handed Elias to Minerva in order to take Maebh's homework book from his jacket's pocket. He opened it up to the picture of the angry sun and trees then showed it to Clara. "How did she know this?"

Clara didn't pay much attention to the picture. "What is it?"

"This is a massive solar flare headed for Earth, like the one that destroyed the Bank of Karabraxos. I've got an entire Tardis and I didn't notice this. But she knew. How?"

Clara took the book from him and closed it to see the name. "This is Maebh's. Where did you get this?"

"You left your grading in the TARDIS," Minerva reminded. "Whole stack of it actually. Elias nearly had himself some new coloring books."

"Yes, mine!" Elias nodded his head. If everyone else got to draw then why couldn't he?

"Oh, great, right, well, that's just brilliant, isn't it," Clara sighed. "You don't think Danny saw this, do you?"

The Doctor exchanged an incredulous look with Minerva, both thinking the same thing.

"I've just informed you that a solar flare is going to wipe out your planet. You're worried about a row with your boyfriend!" the Doctor said to Clara, rather surprised at her. "How did she know this? She even put the date on it!"

"I always make them date their homework," Clara shrugged.

"It's _today's_ date!"

"Ah," Clara re-opened the book just to double check. "Okay, well...there must be a way?"

"They want something, clearly," Minerva said from behind. "And they're trying to to say something but only Maebh Arden can hear them."

"Okay, you know they're not really gifted and talented, don't you? I just tell them that to make them feel good."

"What a mean thing to say," Minerva shook her head.

"She's lost someone. People who've lost someone, they're always listening, always looking, always hoping!" the Doctor explained better. "So, they notice more. They hear more."

A wolf howl cut the conversation short.

"Was that a howl?" Liv nearly laughed at herself for such a ridiculous question.

But then a second howl was heard, one in response to the first.

"Was that a _wolf_?" asked Clara. "No...that's...that's impossible. We're in London."

"London with a _zoo_?" Minerva's sharp voice made her turn. "The zoo with the pack of wolves? The zoo whose barriers and gates have probably been mangled by the trees? No, wolves are not impossible. Stick to the path, Red Riding Hood."

"There is no path!" Clara waved her hands, exasperated.

"Wooooo…" Elias tried to imitate the wolf howls.

"Shhhh!" Minerva lightly put her hand on his. "This is not the time to mimic animals, El."

The Doctor slowly backtracked to where Minerva stood. He didn't want to say 'they were lunch' but...they were lunch.

Suddenly, they heard Maebh's scream from a distance. They bolted in that direction and hoped to God it wasn't what they thought it was. They made it to a wrought iron fence where Maebh was trying to escape from wolves.

Clara jumped onto the fence. "Doctor, give me a boost so I can pull her over. Maebh? Maebh!"

Maebh looked around and ran to the side, pushing open the gate and closed it behind her. The Doctor hurried up to the little girl.

"Maebh. You came looking for me. You didn't-" but Maebh started waving her hands over her head, like she was trying to swat away little bugs. "Maebh, Maebh, you didn't just stumble into the Tardis. Tell me what you know."

"Doctor," Clara was looking at the wolves getting closer to the other side of the fence.

"This is important!"

"Yes! Can we please deal with the wolves first?"

"Those are zoo wolves, probably not even used to hunting…" Minerva eyed said wolves cautiously.

But the wolves blared their very sharp teeth at them, coming closer.

The Doctor straightened and pulled Maebh back. "All right, okay. We've just got to look as if we're too much bother to eat, right? So, stay still. Stay together." He pulled them all together. "Look big. Look big like a big three-headed, six-legged scary thing!"

"Dis!" Elias imitated his father and raised his hands over his head.

But suddenly, the wolves jumped over the fence and ran away with high pitched whinning.

"Ha ha!" the Doctor cheered. "Told you they were rubbish. Those wolves are terrified."

Minerva was not as happy. "So then makes you wonder what wolves are terrified of."

Because then a deep growl filled the area. It was, of course, a much more fierce animal: a tiger.

"There are very good solid scientific reasons for being really quite frightened just now," the Doctor muttered and pulled Minerva and Elias closer to him.

But before the tiger could move closer, a flashlight shined on its face. It retreated and went the opposite way. Danny turned off the torch he'd used and walked into view, revealing to be with the kids.

"Mister Pink!" Clara exclaimed happily. "Why, thank you very much."

"Ah, no problem. Just decided it was best not to leave you alone with them," Danny made a discreet nod to Minerva and the Doctor.

Minerva's eyes narrowed at him in response. What was so wrong with them?

"Er, has she had her medication yet?" Danny spotted Maebh behind them, beside the Doctor, as she was once again waving her hands at invisible particles.

"Oh!" Clara swung her bag forwards to get said medication. "No, I-"

"No, no!" the Doctor rejected the idea. "Not her medication. We don't want to shut her up. We want to know what she knows!" he bent down in front of the girl. "Maebh, what's the-" but she continued to wave her hands, "-Maebh, what is this? What is this?" the Doctor imitated her movements but she didn't respond.

"Apart from being almost savaged by a tiger and abducted by a Scotsman, she's allowed any nervous tics she likes, okay?" Danny called from the other side of the fence.

"Hey!" Minerva sharply called back. "It's always so human-like to shut down anything remotely different! Ever thought perhaps there's a reason why she does it? If not, then please do me the favor to be quiet-"

"Please! Just give her her tablets. She's been in a state since her sister went missing!" Ruby cut her off frantically.

Maebh turned and ran off.

"Maebh!" the Doctor went after her.

Everyone soon did the same.

They followed Maebh into a clearing that was glowing a bright orange. Maebh stopped in front of a cobweb festooned area that was surrounded by smallish trees.

"Miss? What is it, miss?" Ruby stopped just behind Clara.

"It's beautiful," Liv appeared to appreciate the scenery.

"It's coming. It's coming for everyone, and I can't unthink it," Maebh said, sounding so tired.

The Doctor cautiously approached the girl. "Maebh. Maebh, this forest is communicating. With you. Nobody else. No technology can hear what it's saying, but you can. Tell us what it wants. Where it came from. Just tell me who did this."

She turned around with a guilt-ridden face. "It was me," she said sadly. "I did this. I did these trees."

"No, Maebh. You didn't make a global forest appear overnight," the Doctor softly said, seeing the girl truly believing she was at fault for it all. "How could you do that?"

"Thoughts come to me. Ever since Annabel went missing, I look for her everywhere. I don't find her, but I find thoughts. The big forest was one. I thought everyone would love it…" Maebh's eyes suddenly flicked up. "The thoughts! The thoughts! They go so fast!" she started waving her hands above again.

For the first time, Clara did what the Doctor and Minerva had said to do from the very beginning. She _listened_. "Maebh, can you see something that we can't see?" Because she knew exactly what that felt like; to see something that no one else can see was truly undescribable.

"Nearly. Too fast," Maebh said incoherently, waving her hands harder. "Everywhere."

"Let's help," Elias said in Minerva's arms. The little girl looked scared and he didn't like it when other kids were scared.

"Of course we will," Minerva shifted him on her hip. "Doctor?"

"On it," the Doctor straightened, pulling out his sonic and pushing several of its buttons. "Everything's subject to gravity. If I can create a little local increase-"

Just as he aimed the sonic at Maebh, Danny exclaimed. "No. You're not experimenting on-" but the sonic made golden dancing particles of light appear around Maebh's head.

Maebh gasped, a small smile appearing on her face. "They're lovely!" she looked at them for another moment then made a face. "They don't like it when you're holding them. They want you to let them go."

"Who are they, Maebh?" asked Minerva.

"We are Here," the girl responded with a deeper voice, indicating she was not the one answering. "Here, always, since the beginning and until the end. We are the green shoots that grow between the cracks, the grass that grows over the mass graves. After your wars are over, we will still be Here. We are the life that prevails."

"Why now? Why are you here now?" the Doctor finally got to ask his question.

"We hear the call and we come, as we came before to the great North Forest, where we lie still in a great circle. As we came to the vast Southern Forest."

"Who is calling you now?"

"The sun that creates. The sun that destroys. You are hurting us. Let us go."

"You sent for me. The girl came looking for me. Why? Why me?"

"We did not send. Pain. Did not send for you. We don't know you. We were here before you and will be here after you."

Thinking that was all they would get, unfortunately, the Doctor turned off the sonic. Maebh fell to her knees at the same time. Danny moved forwards to help her just as the Doctor did.

"Maebh, you came looking for the Doctor," the Doctor tried one more time. "Think. Who sent you for the Doctor?"

"It was just a thought," Maebh explained lightly. "It was just a thought that came. I think it came from Miss." She looked over to Clara, and soon Danny did the same. "They've gone. Why does everything have to go?"

"No help?" Elias quietly asked his mother.

Minerva ran a hand through her short hair and crossed eyes with the Doctor. He came back to them, but Clara went after.

"This really is going to happen, isn't it?" her voice was as quiet as possible.

"Stars implode. Planets grow cold. Catastrophe is the metabolism of the universe. I can fight monsters. I can't fight physics," the Doctor gritted his teeth.

"But why would the trees want to kill the humans?" Liv could not finish understanding. "I thought they love trees."

"Um," Minerva had something to say about that. "You've been chopping them down for furniture for centuries. If that's love, no wonder they're calling down fire from the heavens."

"But we saw the future. Lots of futures. Earth's futures," Clara said as a last resort.

"They're about to be erased," the Doctor rubbed his face.

Clara glanced back at the students and Danny, deciding something silently. "If you can't save them all, save who you can. The Tardis. It's a lifeboat, isn't it? Not everybody has to die."

Minerva nodded at the Doctor. The entire group started back for the TARDIS with Danny at the lead giving the children a song to pass by the fear. By the time they returned, they found the TARDIS was covered underneath with vines.

"Right, come on, team," Danny had all the kids help pull the vines off.

Clara waited till they were safely away to begin talking with the truth. "When they're done, you need to get in your box and go."

"We're all going. We're taking the kids," the Doctor said, believing this had already been accepted. It was her idea, after all.

"Taking them where? What are you going do with them?" Clara sighed, briefly glancing at the children. "Leave them on an asteroid? Find a space academy for the gifted and talented? They just want their mums and dads, and they're never going to stop wanting them."

Minerva had weighed the options of where to bring the kids. She was already forced to rule out the Monsoon on grounds of it being far too cold for them, and even Nix Terra.

"So then what do you expect us to do?" the Doctor suspiciously asked Clara.

"I expect you…" Clara blinked, a tinge of sadness making through her mask, "...to get in your TARDIS and go."

"Clara," Minerva frowned, frankly offended she would ever think they could follow with this plan.

"I get what she's trying to do," Liv appeared right beside Clara. "And I think she might be right."

" _Liv_ …" Minerva blinked. "I'm not...we're not…"

"On behalf of this world, thank you for always being there," Clara said. "But now go. Save the next one."

The Doctor didn't think he should have to argue with this ludicrous plan, but apparently he was going to have to. "We're not going. The impossible has never stayed impossible for me."

"Helping time," even Elias was determined to make a contribution to this saving.

"They would have to literally lock me up before I let go of you and my sister," Minerva declared, glancing at Liv for a second.

"There's no other choice-" Clara was in the middle of rebutting when Maebh came by.

"Are you going to get rid of the forest?" her curious, innocent question made the adults stop and look at each other.

Clara, still on board with her idea, put her hand on Maebh's arm and began to lead her away. "Hard to get rid of a flame-proof forest, Maebh, eh? Come on."

Minerva turned to the Doctor, no words needed to know what they decided on.

"Wait a minute…" Minerva suddenly snapped her fingers at Clara and Maebh. "Clara!"

Thinking she would need to outright tell them to leave, Clara sighed and looked back. "Just go-"

" _Oh_ ," the Doctor had found the realization as well. "Oh that...that is…flame-proof forest. A thousand atom bombs and no one hurt. I am Doctor Idiot!"

"Glad we finally established that!" Liv said first and foremost with a laugh. "But could someone explain?"

"Hey!" Minerva shouted to the rest. "All of you are required back in the TARDIS! Fresh minty-brownies are in it, let's go!"

At the mention of treats, the children came rushing for the TARDIS. Clara wasn't too pleased but she followed as well. Eventually, all the children were sat on the steps to the gallery with Clara and Danny at the lowest step. Wanting to be part of the group, Elias came along with his teddy bear and plopped himself down on the floor just between Clara's and Danny's legs.

Minerva had pulled the solar flare onto the monitor for the Doctor to explain. "It's there on the screen, look," the Doctor pushed the monitor for the others to see. "Big solar flare headed this way. A thousand kilometres a second. Coronal mass ejection. Geomagnetic storm. It's huge. It's brewing up a solar wind big enough to blow this whole planet away."

The students looked amongst them, getting nervous.

Minerva looked up from the console and turned to the students. "Haven't your teachers mentioned this before?"

"You would assume wrong," Liv sat on the rails, legs swinging forwards.

"I thought it would spoil an otherwise enjoyable walk," Clara mumbled under her breath.

"Uh, okay," the Doctor took a moment to get back on track. "Well, this is the bad news. The good news is, it's happened before. And you're still here. The Tunguska Blast, 1908. That should have blown the whole planet off its axis, but it didn't. It knocked a few trees over. Well, a few tens of thousands of trees over. In Brazil. Same story. Earth should have been smashed, but it wasn't. What do these things have in common?"

"They're really, really scaring us?" Ruby answered for the rest.

"Well don't be," Minerva walked around the console till she was in front of them like the Doctor. "Because you've got trees."

"Whenever there's a planet-threatening, extra-terrestrial impact, there's trees!" the Doctor excitedly said. "Massive forest, filling the atmosphere with oxygen. Pumping it up like a massive, highly inflammable airbag, so that when trouble hits-"

"Everyone dies!" another student said.

"No," Minerva made a face. "C'mon kids, we're trying to give you some good news."

The Doctor nodded. "The impact burns off the excess oxygen. You have some fairly hectic weather for a few days and some fairly trippy looking sunsets, but apart from that, you will be all right. I was wrong. The trees are not your enemy. They're your shield. They've been saving you since for ever. Protecting you from everything that space can throw at you."

"The wide ring," Clara whispered, recalling the strange tree stump Ruby had shown her earlier in the day. She got up from her spot. "The red ring! In the museum, Ruby saw a cross-section of a tree. One of the rings was wider than the others, and red."

"Atmospheric dust, captured by the trees," the Doctor grew giddier the more right he was being proven. "The fingerprint of an asteroid. Happy Red Ring Day!"

"I don't get it. If they're good, then why are we chopping them down?" Ruby suddenly asked and had both aliens staring at her.

"They're doing what now?" Minerva stepped forwards.

"The Government are sending out defoliating teams. They're dropping chemicals on them right now," Danny further explained for them.

"Oh my God," Minerva put a hand on her forehead. "What is it with you people? You hear voices, you want to shut them up. The trees come to save you, you want to chop them down. I love you but...c'mon!"

"Hm," Liv hopped off the rails. "Or you think you need to save the world when it's already saving itself."

The Doctor mock glared her way but for the sake of her secret presence he didn't retaliate.

"Mobile networks are still operative," Minerva's voice drew him back to the problem.

"Right. We are going to call everyone on Earth and tell them to leave the trees alone," the Doctor resoluted.

"Can I do it?" Maebh's volunteerment made them both stop. "I started it. I should finish it."

"Now there's a teaching job I can get behind on," Minerva laughed. "Class project: save the Earth!"

~ 0 ~

Maebh had been given a pencil and a notebook to create a speech she would say once she had everyone on the line. All the children were gathered around on her on the floor to help her create the speech. Elias tried pushing himself through the crowd of kids, running to different spots, and saying "move!" rather rudely to get a view.

Finally, he gave up with a big huff and turned away, holding his teddy bear tightly. "No thank you," he came dejectedly back to his parents.

Minerva held back her laugh and picked him right up. "I think it's time we get you some friends, El. Some that are your age." Elias let his head drop onto her shoulders, using his teddy bear to hide his face.

' _Perhaps we could set aside some time just for him to have some interaction with other children_.' the Doctor's voice rang in Minerva's mind.

They had talked about it before but never actually followed through. Even Mayar had suggested to them that it would be a good idea to start allowing Elias to spend time with other children his age, preferably of the Monsoon, for his social skills to develop. It was crucial for them to truly start recording down all of Elias' developmental milestones in order to make sure they could help him in areas that weren't doing so well.

 _You realize of course that would mean less travelling_ , Minerva warned.

 _For Arlo, I will do anything_ , the Doctor promised.

"Okay, and I think that's it," Maebh finally stood up from the floor with her notebook in hand.

The Doctor reached for a switch and pushed it upwards, making everyone's cellphones ring. Maebh held her notebook and began to speak.

 _"Essential services have been disrupted due to an unexpected forest. We'd like to reassure you that the situation will be rectified very soon. Please don't be scared. And please don't chop, spray or harm the trees. They're here to help. Be less scared. Be more trusting. Oh, and Annabel Arden, please come home."_

The Doctor then flicked the switch down to end the transmission. "Okay, who would like to witness a once in a billion years solar event at close quarters?"

Maebh happened to see the monitor that was showing her mother was arriving at the area. "Mum! There's my mum!" she ran for the doors without a care in the world.

Indeed her mother was outside and was joyous to see her daughter safe and sound. Clara smiled and glanced at the rest of the children.

"So, trip to space, anyone?"

But the children weren't as happy as one would think.

"I want my mum," Ruby admitted.

"I slightly want my mum, too," Bradley agreed, put out much like she was.

"Tell them, Mister Pink, what an educational opportunity it would be," Clara looked to Danny for some backup.

"You, you go. This. This is enough for me," Danny took one look at the console room and shook his head.

"What? Coronal ejections, geomagnetic storms. How often do you get a playlist like that?"

"I was a soldier. I put myself at risk. I didn't try too hard to survive, but somehow, here I am. And now I can see what I nearly lost. And it's enough. I don't want to see more things. I want to see the things in front of me more clearly. There are wonders here, Clara Oswald. Bradley saying please, that's a wonder. One person is more amazing, harder to understand, but more amazing than universes."

"I almost teared up," Liv pretended to wipe some tears off her face.

Clara wished she could smack Liv for interrupting. She just kissed Danny and hoped Liv would disappear to somewhere else.

~ 0 ~

From outerspace, the Doctor, Minerva, Clara and Liv - with Elias in the Doctor's arms - watched the Earth take on the sun's solar flare.

"I hope I'm right. It would be slightly awkward if the world was destroyed at this point," the Doctor admitted.

"What?" Liv leaned forwards to get a look at him.

The solar flare finally reached the Earth's atmosphere and engulfed the entire planet.

"There goes the planet-sized airbag. That's the trees, harvesting the solar fire," the Doctor explained, feeling monumentally relieved to see no harsh effects on the planet.

~ 0 ~

After a long day, Clara was finally left back in her apartment along with Liv. Before she left, however, she provided one more homework book for Elias so that he would be able to draw as well. Clara teased he was going to be a student in her english class now. Minerva watched Elias from the console as the toddler babbled to himself and his teddy bear while he scribbled on the homework book. The Doctor came by from the gallery with a curious face.

"What are you thinking?" he asked quietly.

"Do you ever think that maybe the reason why Elias holds onto that bear is because...he doesn't have any friends?"

"All children latch onto something in order to feel safe," the Doctor casually explained.

"Yes, but, sometimes I feel like...like he wants to talk...but...he doesn't have anyone to."

"He's a toddler, Minerva," the Doctor gave her a sideways glance. "He doesn't talk. He babbles."

"Well, then he deserves to have someone to babble with. And-" Minerva pointed at him before he got any ideas, "-I'm not talking about giving him a sibling."

"Well, it's not a bad idea," the Doctor murmured.

"Yes, sometime in the future, we've discussed," Minerva nudged him playfully. "I mean, every child needs a friend. Elias already has difficulties considering he's the only one of his species."

"There's Elizabeth Smith-Jones," the Doctor reminded.

"Yes, there is," Minerva acknowledged. "But Elizabeth is not up to Elias' development yet. She's human, she develops slower. At best we would need to have him with Moontsay children."

"What do you recommend then?" the Doctor turned to her, genuinely wondering where she was going with this. "Because I don't need to remind you that Elias is known as 'the prince' of the Monsoon and 'the next heir' do I?"

"No, you don't," Minerva shook her head, accepting that it would be just as difficult to integrate Elias into Moontsay society when he was known as 'royalty'. She should know, she went through the same thing. "When I was a kid, my parents rarely let me have contact with children my age that wasn't family. I don't want the same thing for Elias. I want him to grow up having friends from any place he wants. It's our job to make sure he has the environment to make those friends. The early years are important. Humans send their kids to preschool in order to begin the social skills they'll need for their elementary schools."

"Yes, but there is no alien preschool we can send him to," the Doctor shrugged. "Besides, anything he would learn I could teach him. Mayar would teach him. You could teach him."

"But that's not the point," Minerva made a gesture with her hands for him to just hear her out. "Lessons right now are just to see what Elias knows and what he doesn't. What's important right now is how he makes contact with other kids. You've seen him, he's...he's not always nice."

"To be fair, I'm not nice either," the Doctor tilted his head.

"I'm very serious," Minerva stepped closer to him.

The Doctor nodded, he could just feel her in his mind that she was concerned. "Okay, what do you propose we do?"

"I'm not sure exactly," Minerva admitted. "But I'm sure we can both come up with the best plan for our son. Anything it takes?"

"Anything it takes," the Doctor agreed.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Next chapter is the last one...with you know whooo ;)


	11. To Hell

Liv sat on the couch chair in Clara's living room, growing dizzy as Clara paced back and forth mumbling things to herself. "This has gone in a whole other direction," Liv admitted and leaned back on the chair, eyes drifting to all the different colored post-its set around the living room.

"Shush!" Clara thrust a pointed finger at Liv while she dialed fast with her other hand.

"Clara!" Danny Pink's cheery voice soon answered.

"Shut up!" went Clara again.

"Poor Danny," Liv remarked at Clara's jittery state.

"Is that how we communicate now?" Danny asked, a bit confused yet amused.

"Shut up, shut up, shut up. I need to talk to you!" Clara announced.

"All right. Well, I'll be there in a couple of minutes, so-"

"No, no, Not while you're in the room!"

"Oh, stupid me. The very idea," Clara could almost see Danny sarcastically rolling his eyes.

"Shut up!" Clara went again.

"Okay-"

"Stay shut up. Things to say! Not all of them good!" Clara stopped pacing and took a deep breath.

Oh, wouldn't it be better if I was actually there?"

"Oh, Danny, everything is better when you're here-"

"Aw," Liv laughed in the background but Clara ignored her.

"-but maybe-" Clara glanced back at a series of post-its all lined up on her shelf. "Maybe not this. Okay Er. Okay, before all of that. Before all of the stuff that I did wrong-" she pulled one of the notes that said 'just say it' and sighed, "-I love you."

"I love you," Danny said back, but it was not as good as he thought.

"No, not like that. Not like it's automatic. Not like it's how you end the phone call, the sign off, the pat on the back."

"Clara-"

"Danny, I'll never say those words again," Clara made a promise there and then. "Not to anybody else, ever. Those words, from me, are yours now." But she heard a loud 'crack!' on the other end followed by silence. "Okay, Danny? Er, there's more but that's kind of the headline." Still nothing. "Okay, Danny, please speak to me, This is, this is killing me," Clara bit an index nail.

"If I wasn't already dead I probably would be with these feelings," Liv put a hand on her heart, feeling monumental amounts of Clara's feelings at the moment.

Clara waved her off and tried getting ahold of Danny again. "Danny, I love you. And you are the last person who's ever going to hear me say that."

"Hello?" a woman was suddenly on the other line.

Clara had to pull away from her phone just to make sure she was still on the line with Danny. "H-hello? Who's this?"

"I just picked up the phone, I'm sorry. I found it," the woman sounded in despair.

"Oh. Er, okay. Er, can you please just put me back on the phone to Danny? I was talking to Danny-"

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," the woman began to sob.

"Okay, er, what are you sorry about? Could you please just pass the phone back to-"

"He was crossing the road. I found the phone, it must have just got thrown. The car, it just came out of nowhere!"

There was a different pang in Liv's heart that she knew was all Clara. Before Liv even got up, Clara bolted out of her apartment. Clara literally ran all the way to the spot she knew Danny had last been. And when she got there, she nearly felt like dying herself.

~ 0 ~

"You ready, then?" Minerva was nervously looking at the Doctor across the console.

"Always," the Doctor gave a firm nod, but even he had to admit he was nervous of Clara's reaction when they told of her (and Liv) of their plan.

They landed right in Clara's flat, thinking they would meet the brunette right on time. However, when the two emerged, all they saw was Liv in the living room.

The blonde woman turned around, looking both relieved and dreadful. "You're...early," she glanced at the clock that read 2:30, just thirty minutes before Clara was expected to arrive.

"Sorry about that," Minerva had also seen the clock.

"Where's Elias?" Liv waited for the toddler to emerge from the box as well but that never happened.

"On the Monsoon," the Doctor responded slowly, exchanging a look with Minerva.

Liv was too delved in her own thoughts to see the bit of knowledge she didn't know yet.

"Liv, we need to talk with you and Clara," Minerva decided to get the story going. It wasn't going to be easy but they had to do it for their son.

"No," Liv said calmly, "I want to talk with both of you first. Please. It's...it's important."

"Right, but-"

"Minerva I am begging you to let me go first," Liv clapped her hands together. "I swear on my half life it's important."

"Okay, fine," Minerva relinquished the authority over to her. "Go right ahead."

Liv sighed. There were many ways to begin to explain, but she didn't feel the energy to go through all the proper ways to explain. She was sure that was Clara's feelings and not hers.

"Liv?" Minerva waited, now a bit concerned. Even the Doctor was detecting something completely off.

Liv licked her lips and just came out with it like ripping a bandage off. "Danny Pink died three days ago."

At first, it was like no one had heard her. The sentence, the statement...it was just...too impossible.

"I-I'm sorry, come again?" the Doctor rubbed his ears.

"Danny died," Liv felt awful repeating the sentence. "He was on his way to talk to Clara and he got hit by car. He didn't make it. Now Clara is a full mess but not even the sort of mess who lets it out like you're meant to. She's bottling in, and she's...she's pushing me away. She's staying at her grandmother's right now."

"So then why aren't you…?"

"She's pushing me away!" Liv flapped her hands at the Doctor. "I can feel-" she patted a hand over her heart, "-her dread. Her endless pain. I can feel it. And it's _awful_. You have to help."

"What can we do?" the Doctor glanced at Minerva. "It's not like we can go back and save her. It's not the way."

Liv ran her hands through her long hair. "You have to do something! Think if it was Clara-"

" _No_ ," Minerva gritted her teeth. "Don't even say that."

"Just, just think about it, please?" Liv once more put her hands together. "Remember the dread you felt when Amy and Rory died and you couldn't go back to save them."

"Yes, exactly, we couldn't go back!" the Doctor exclaimed.

"But this isn't like that! We're talking about a regular human who was hit by a car! You have to know something!"

"Like what!?"

"The afterlife!" Soon as those words left Liv's mouth, she looked to Minerva.

"Oh…" Minerva took the stares with a sway of her head. "Oh, sure. Turn to the only one that actually believes in the afterlife."

"Minerva, I'm serious!"

"As am I," Minerva defensively argued.

"Okay, look," Liv rushed up the blonde. "You always talk and talk about the different afterlives species have. You are always a firm believer-"

"I still _am_ ," Minerva calmly clarified.

"Yes! And today is the day to prove it!" Liv exclaimed.

"You want us…" Minerva slowly began, "...to find an afterlife...where Danny Pink might be?"

Liv nodded her head. "Absolutely. For Clara. Because she's like my sister too, Minerva. And I would go to hell and back for her."

Minerva's face softened. "For Clara, you would do that?"

"Yes!"

Silence passed by and Liv couldn't think of another moment where time passed by so slowly.

Minerva took a breath in, meeting the Doctor's gaze. "Well, dear, I've always wanted to find an afterlife. Care to find one with me?"

"I'm never one to deny you," the Doctor turned back for the TARDIS.

"Thank you Minerva, thank you Doctor," Liv sighed of relief. "Really, thank you so much!"

"For you and Clara, we'd do anything," Minerva promised and followed the Doctor into the TARDIS.

~ 0 ~

When Clara heard the TARDIS outside the powell estate, she hoped to God it was just a dream. She didn't want to see anyone, much less them. In the end, however, Liv appeared and forced Clara to come out.

Clara languidly pushed the TARDIS doors open and stepped inside. "What?" she expectantly waited for a good reason to be given on why she should even be there.

"You can kick, you can shout, you can cry, but you're coming with us," Minerva snapped her fingers and the doors shut behind Clara, and since Clara was still so close the brunette flinched.

"I don't want to travel right now," Clara mumbled. She was sure Liv already told them about Danny, and the last thing she wanted was for those pity looks everyone was giving her nowadays.

"This is a special sort of trip," the Doctor promised her. "We're going to Hell."

"Scuse me?" blinked the brunette.

"We're finally making a trip that I've always dreamed about," Minerva pointed, a bit, shamefully, excited. "We're going to the afterlife."

"Or wherever it is people go when they die," the Doctor amended, less spiritual than his wife.

"What?" Clara wasn't sure if her ears were just deceiving her or if they were being serious.

"They're going to try and bring Danny back," Liv took her hand, squeezing it comfortingly.

"We...we can do that?" Clara's eyes drifted back to the other two.

"If there is anywhere. Wherever it is, we're going to go there and we're going to find Danny," Minerva promised her. "And if it is in any way possible, we're going to bring him home. Almost every culture in the universe has some concept of an afterlife so we're bound to find something."

"So...so you're going to help me?" Clara couldn't finish processing.

"If it's possible, of course," the Doctor pulled the lever to get them going. "Now come here."

Obediently, Clara came forwards.

"Switching off the safeguards, turning off the nav-com. Remember, we did this before," the Doctor positioned her exactly where she needed to be. "We plugged you into the Tardis telepathic interface."

"We ended up all over Danny's timestream," Clara recalled the messy trip.

"Because you and he are linked. Strongly linked," Minerva pointed. "Your timestreams are intertwined. So if he's anywhere at all, that link will hold."

"Give me your hands," the Doctor motioned. He took her hands and put them into the orange gloop meant to serve as telepathic connections. "Think about Danny. Think about the man you lost. Let it hurt. Let it burn. But don't bleat. Don't ask, why him? Why me? Forget all that. Ask one question. Just one. Ask, where is Danny Pink now? Where is he now?"

Minerva smirked when the time rotor started again. "Well...the Tardis thinks he's somewhere."

Clara pulled her hands from the console, surprised herself it had actually worked. "Where are we?"

"Nav-com's offline. We'll have to do this old school," Minerva informed after checking the console.

"But this is where Danny is?"

"Almost certainly not. It's where there's a connection with Danny," the Doctor corrected. "According to the TARDIS, this is where it's most likely that your timeline will re-intersect with his. And that won't do."

"What won't?"

"You won't. Look at you. I need skeptical, clever, critical. I don't need mopey."

"Doctor," Liv scolded.

"It put years on your face!" he continued. "And what if people see us together? It looks like you've been melted."

"Pull it back, dear," Minerva walked on by. "You're forgetting the reason why we're here!"

"M-Minerva!" the Doctor went after her seeing she was so prepared to check what was on the other side without care.

They appeared to be in some sort of high maintenance lobby. The place was dark, needing the Doctor to shine a torch with his sonic. Slowly, they made it forwards, ignoring a large urn on a plinth with an eternal flame burning in it. The Doctor shined the torch/sonic on a small plaque with a company logo on it.

"Rest in Peace, We promise," Liv distastefully read.

Minerva stared at the endless glass-fronted cubicles lined on either side of the building. Somewhere off they could hear water running.

"Fish tanks?" Clara stopped by one of the cubicles.

"In a mausoleum?" the Doctor repeated, not too convinced they were in the right place anymore.

They went up the steps to the urn, continuing to observe. Liv scowled at the urn.

"What the hell does that mean?" she winced at her choice of words. "Never mind."

"What it means…" the Doctor came up, "...is that those are definitely not fish tanks."

Minerva shook her head and decided to keep going. Something wasn't sitting right with her. She gasped at the sight of more cubicles, or tanks by this point, with skeletons inside each of them, sitting on a chair.

"Why?" was all that Clara could say after the sight.

"I don't know," Minerva swallowed hard. She was glad Elias was not with them and was just enjoying himself on the Monsoon.

"Okay, I'm assuming they didn't actually drown in there," Liv tapped a finger against the glass wall.

"No. They were placed, after death," the Doctor looked at the rest of the cubicles. "These are tombs. Water tombs, some sort of fluid, anyway."

"With chairs?" Liv stared after him. "Yeah, that's not how the afterlife works."

"And how would you know?" the Doctor countered, turning around. "You haven't exactly gone there, remember?"

Liv crossed her arms, not too amused.

"Oh, God. Am I going to find Danny now?" Clara's heart clenched at the idea. "Is that why the TARDIS brought us here? I don't want to see him like that."

"Good point. Tombs with windows. Who wants to watch their loved ones rot?" the Doctor murmured. "Why would anyone go to so much trouble just to keep watch on the dead?"

"Someone with a plan," Minerva went after them.

"Over here," Liv called, reappearing in front of a book on a lecturn. The Doctor got there first and opened it up, making a cube rise up from it.

"Explanations, I hope," Minerva mumbled as she came up beside him.

Soft music played in the background as a woman's voice began to speak words that scrolled down. " _3W. Death is not an end. But we can we help with that. Ever since 3W encountered the truth about the death experience, 'we have been working hard to find a better life for the deceased. At 3W, afterlife means aftercare_."

"Okay, bit strange," Clara admitted, even for all this to be an 'afterlife'.

"Very. Why have the scrolling and a voice?" the Doctor rolled his eyes. "Is it difficult?"

"Yes, I don't think she meant that, dear," Minerva patted his arm. "Alright," she began to call in a louder voice, startling the Doctor. "Who ever is in charge here might wanna step up!"

"Minerva-" the Doctor was going to tell her perhaps it wasn't wise to mess with the afterlife's leader when a dark-haired woman passed right through the logo, making it disappear altogether.

"There we go," Minerva's lips curled into a smirk. "And a woman. Even easier!"

The woman, who had stark blue eyes, and was dressed in a Victorian-like attire, came forwards. "Hello," she spoke in an English voice. "I hope you're well. How may I assist you with your death?"

The Doctor reached for Minerva's arm to try and pull her back but the blonde swatted his hand away. "Well, there is, er, no immediate hurry. We're just, er. We're just-"

"Browsing," Clara said.

"Yeah, yeah, browsing-"

"Please, take all the time you need. At 3W, you always have the rest of your life," the woman assured.

"Riiight…" Minerva drawled. "And, uh, what exactly is 3W?"

"Apologies. Clearly you have not received the official 3W greetings package."

"Clearly not," Minerva gave a tilt of her head.

And then the woman surprised her with a very hard slap across the face. The Doctor caught his wife in his arms, widened eyes that threatened in the next second. Clara gasped behind and Liv was just confused.

"You _hypocrite_ ," went the dark-haired woman with a straight face.

With a hand on her cheek, and mildly disheveled hair, Minerva gaped at the woman. "Oh I don't think so-" she balled her fist that instantly billowed icy smoke.

"No!" the Doctor grabbed her by the waist and turned her around so that his back was facing the dark-haired woman.

"Doctor you better let me down so I can kill the afterlife!" raged Minerva.

"You also have not received the official welcome package," the dark-haired woman looked at Clara next.

Liv then fully appeared in front of the woman, eyes narrowed. "I think the hell not." The woman was surprised to find Liv there. She had definitely not seen Liv yet. "Start explaining before my sister kills you, again," Liv ordered.

"I am Missy. Mobile Intelligent Systems Interface. I am a multi-function, interactive welcome-droid. Helping you to help me to help you."

"I'll help you in a minute!" Minerva had stopped fighting against the Doctor and so he turned back to Missy but still kept his arms tightly around Minerva. "Why the hell did you slap me-"

"Aaaah, darling," the Doctor cut in before she said something more.

"I am fully programmed with social interaction norms appropriate to a range of visitors. Please indicate if you'd like me to adjust my intimacy setting," Missy responded.

"I'd be-" Minerva pushed some of her hair away from her face, "-glad to show you!"

"I-I need to speak to whoever's in charge here," the Doctor spoke over Minerva.

"I am in charge!" Missy promptly responded.

"Well, who's in charge of you?"

"I'm in charge of me."

Minerva had lost patience with Missy. "Well, who repairs you? Who, who maintains you?" she angrily demanded.

"I am programmed for self-repair. I am maintained by my heart."

"Your clever words are gonna earn you a snowy smack on the face," Minerva warned.

"Who maintains your heart?" the Doctor tried again but was wearily watching Minerva's fists that were glowing blue.

"My heart is maintained by the Doctor."

"Doctor who?"

"Doctor Chang!" Missy suddenly screamed and walked away.

"I've never wondered if it was possible to kill someone from the afterlife," Minerva released a shuddering breath.

The Doctor reached for one of her hands despite it freezing cold. Feeling the instant warmth of his hand, Minerva immediately dropped the coldness for his sake. She didn't want to hurt him.

A man walked towards them, presumed to be Dr. Chang coming to greet them. "So. Hey. Condolences."

"Condolences?" Liv reappred again, arms crossed.

"It's a mausoleum. It's our hello," Chang explained. "Is there a particular dead person you want to talk to?"

"Plenty, but I think I'll wait before fully moving on," Liv responded in a flat manner.

"Yes, we're quite interested in how you do that appearing trick…" Chang eyed her for a moment.

"She means to say we do have someone to talk to," Clara took her chance to speak with Danny.

"This way then," Chang motioned for them to follow him.

"Are you okay?" Minerva glanced at her, forgetting about her temporal problems for Clara.

"No."

Liv walked back to take Clara's hand and pulled her after Chang and the others. "There would be something very wrong if you were."

~ 0 ~

Chang led the group into an office and the very frist thing they saw was another of the tanks set right at the center.

"Come in, come in. Going to need to take a reading off you," Chang took Clara to his desk.

"A reading?" asked Clara.

"Won't hurt."

"What won't?"

Minerva and the Doctor had gone straight for the tank with a skeleton sitting in it.

"How does the body keep its integrity? Why isn't it just a bunch of bones floating about?" the Doctor desperately wanted to know.

"Each body is encased in a support exoskeleton," Chang responded.

"An invisible exoskeleton?" Minerva glanced at him.

"It's only invisible in the water. There's a specially engineered refraction index in the fluid so we can see the tank resident unimpeded by the support mechanisms."

"So each skeleton is inside something?" the Doctor stared at the skeleton with even more curiosity than before. It sure seemed like a lot of care for the dead.

"Are you serious? X-ray water?" Liv's eyes briefly glanced at the skeleton. "Nope, that's it. I'm never moving on."

"It's so cool," Chang sounded like he was trying to persuade her, despite not knowing her exact situation. "Look at this." He pulled a bucket of dark water from around his desk and set it over for the tohers to see. "We call it dark water." He dunk his arm into the bucket and let the others see how his wristwatch and jacket sleeve vanish. "Only organic matter can be seen through it. I keep saying they should use this stuff in swimming pools." He pulled his arm out and moved for a towel nearby.

"But _why_?" the Doctor asked.

"Think about it."

"I _am_ thinking about it," the Doctor said, a straight face, "Why?"

"Doesn't matter. 3W, what kind of name is that? What does it mean?" Minerva returned to the desk, slightly on the fence about it all. "What kind of afterlife is this?"

"Well, you know, don't you? You're here on business or they wouldn't have let you in. Sorry. Should have checked. Who are you?"

"Mm," Minerva made a distasteful face. "Sort out your security protocols, they're a disgrace. And throw out that robot you have around here while you're at it."

The Doctor came over with the psychic paper in hand. He handed it to Chang for the man to see.

"Another government inspection? So soon?" Chang's eyes moved up to Liv. "And what's she, then? Some sort of trick?"

"A robot," Liv smirked. "High tech one, thank you very much."

"What does 3W stand for?" Minerva demanded again.

"Well, the three words," Chang said, but no one got it. "Seriously? You don't know?"

"Never mind what we know and what we don't know, just answer our question," the Doctor was close to losing his thin patience as well.

Chang was still hesitant to answer them. "Because people who don't know, when they hear about this, they can freak out."

"I promise you we're not going to freak out," Minerva said, very serious.

Chang glanced over to Clara. "If you've had a recent loss, this might be, this will be disturbing."

"She'll be fine," the Doctor said without a thought.

"Speak for me again, I'll detach something from you," Clara threatened but it just went over his head. "I'll be fine."

"You know how people are scared of dying? Like, everybody."

"But of course, it's the most fundamental fear in the universe," Minerva rolled her eyes at this mundane explanation.

"They'd be a lot more scared if they knew what it was really like," Chang pushed a button nearby on the desk and activated the see-through computer screen. "White noise off the telly. We've all heard it. A few years ago, Doctor Skarosa, our founder, did something unexpected. He played that noise through a translation matrix of his own devising. This is a recording of what he heard."

There came a new sound, that of multiple voices overlapping.

"Okay, people...voices…" Clara said slowly.

"So what?" Liv raised an eyebrow.

"Over time, Doctor Skarosa became convinced these were the voices of the recently departed. He believed it was a telepathic communication from the dead."

"Was he _bored_?" Minerva crossed her arms.

Chang shook his head. "He was able to isolate some of the voices, hear what they were saying."

"Oh, my bad, an idiot," Minerva corrected herself.

"Minerva," Clara shot her a look to cool it with her temper.

Chang turned off the transmission. "What I'm about to play you will change your life and not for the better. These are the three words which caused Doctor Skarosa to set up institutes, like this one, all over the world, to protect the dead. If you'd rather not hear these words, there's still time-"

"Can you just hurry up, please, or I'll hit you with my shoe," the Doctor asked very bluntly, probably meaning his threat.

Chang sighed and went back to the transmission, re-activtating.

 _"Don't cremate me. Don't cremate me!"_

"There is one simple, horrible possibility that has never occurred to anyone throughout human history," Chang eyed the transmission wearily. "The dead remain conscious. The dead are fully aware of everything that is happening to them."

"I'll have to correct you there sir," Liv dropped her words with disgust. "On grounds that I AM am already dead and I didn't feel a thing. All of this-" she wildly gestured to the room, "-is a mockery of all the dead buried!"

Even if Chang wanted to, he didn't understand her. "I promise you this is not a con."

"What's that beeping?" Clara's eyes scanned the area.

"Never mind about beeping. Who cares about beeping? The dead are dead," the Doctor thought this should be an outright logical viewpoint but then again there were plenty of actual idiots out there. 'They're not talking to you out of your television sets. They're just gone!"

"Well," Minerva had to admit that wasn't entirely true. "Maybe not 'gone, gone' but to say that they're still feeling? Please."

Chang didn't respond to their accusations. He went back to the buttons on his desk and ended the small beeping noise. He pulled out a tablet and did a number of swipes until they heard Danny Pink's voice.

"Clara? Clara? Clara, are you there?"

Clara's eyes widened and she nearly ran into the desk. "Danny! I can hear you. Is that you? Oh, please, say it's you."

But just like that, it was cut off.

"Just lost the signal. But I can track it back, I'm pretty sure," Chang took back the tablet to work on it.

"I don't, I don't understand. What is happening?" Clara couldn't believe she'd actually been talking to Danny.

"We've been scanning you telepathically since you came in. You said you wanted to speak to someone who'd passed, and we've found you a match in the Nethersphere," Chang explained while he worked.

"The Nethersphere?" Minerva's eyebrows raised together. "That's what it's called?"

"This isn't possible," the Doctor shook his head. "The dead don't come back."

"Weeeell…" Minerva began but he continued denying it.

"What happened with Liv was a one-time thing!" he exclaimed. "And we all know that this her isn't even her - it's an echo of her soul!"

"I'd be really offended if I wasn't accepting of myself," Liv rolled her eyes at him.

"But it was him. It was his voice," Clara tried to believe it was actually real.

"If they scanned you telepathically, they could've lifted a voice print. It could still be a fake," the Doctor was acting on logical reasons.

"Clara, can you hear me?" they heard Danny again.

Clara practically snatched the tablet from Chang to answer. "Yes, Danny, I can hear you. Can you hear me?"

"Yeah, yeah, I can hear you. Clara! Oh, God. Clara."

"What do I do?" Clara looked up at her friends desperately.

"Question him. Ask him questions only he'd know the answer to. Be sure," was all Minerva could say. Of course there was a chance that the Doctor was right, and while she hoped he wasn't, she had to be careful and warn Clara.

"You-" the Doctor pointed at Chang, "-with me."

"Where are you going!?"

"Gonna go to check out those tanks, clearly," Minerva saw through the Doctor's head.

"There's something that I'm missing," the Doctor started for the doors.

"I wanna know what it is," Minerva followed.

"I'll just go for privacy reasons," Liv smiled at Clara. "But listen, the Doctor, however blunt he is, can be right. So just be skeptical and critical, remember? Be strong, even if it breaks your heart."

"Connection's stabilised. It should be okay," Chang reassured Clara before getting up and going away with the Doctor and Minerva.

"Who would harvest dead bodies? I feel like I'm missing something obvious," the Doctor was sure he would berate himself after he discovered what he was missing.

"This smells like an evil plan," Minerva sighed.

Of course when they made it back to the gallery and saw the droid, Missy, standing in front of the tanks that now held _standing_ skeletons while also draining itself from its waters, they figured something else was going on.

"Oh, my God. The tanks The tanks are activating!" Chang exclaimed. "They're not supposed to do that."

"I'm guessing the droid isn't supposed to be doing that either?" Minerva cast a glare at Missy. "Not to mention that all your dead are now standing. Skipped the headline again, huh?"

"Now, now, children. Naughty, naughty," Missy turned around wearing a taunting smile.

"Doctor Chang, your welcome droid has developed a fault," the Doctor stared at the woman.

"That's not a droid. That's my boss!" Chang revealed.

"You know, I might have been guilty of a just teensy little fibette," Missy came sauntering closer to them. "Doctor Chang, I really liked working with you. I've enjoyed every day of it."

"I'm sorry?"

"You know, I've even got a little photograph of you looking so sweet. I'm always going to keep it. Always!"

Chang realized what she was getting at and panicked. "Are you going to kill me?"

"Now, come on. Let's not dwell on horrid things. This is going to be our last conversation, and I'm the one who's going to have to live with that."

"Please don't kill me," Chang stammered.

"Say something nice," Missy ordered ever-so-sweetly.

"Please, please. I don't, I don't want to die. You're going to kill me, aren't you?"

"Say something nice."

"Please!"

"Doctor Chang, I've got all day. And I'm not going to kill you until you say something nice," Missy shifted on her hip.

"It has been an absolute pleasure working with you, and I truly believe that you'll never be able to find it in your heart to murder me," Chang did his best effort to put together that sentence in one go.

Minerva thrust a hand forwards and shot ice towards Missy in an attempt to save the man's life. It appeared Missy had been one step ahead of her because soon as Minerva fired she pulled out a small device and ducked, activating the device at the same time and firing a heat ray at Chang.

"Predictable," Missy went as she straightened back up. "As of late, anyways, which is a bit ironic...for you."

Minerva gaped, as did the Doctor.

The Doctor's attention was soon driven to the tanks when he spotted the water level dropping below the top of the skeletons' heads...revealing a silver metal surface. "Cybermen!"

Liv appeared between the two and Missy, staring at the tank in front of her. "We've got to stop them getting out!"

"Oh please someone has got to tell me how this one worked!" Missy was delighted with Liv's appearance, full of curiosity too. "But no, no, business first, right? The Nethersphere. You know it's ever so funny, the people that live inside that think they've gone to heaven."

The Doctor looked up at the globe in the ceiling, making a face as it suddenly became more familiar to him. "That's...that's a matrix data-slice. A Gallifreyan hard drive. Time Lord technology."

"Now how would you get ahold of that?" Minerva dropped her arms to her sides, giving Missy a full frontal stare.

"Imagine you could upload dying minds to that. Edit them. Rearrange them. Get rid of all those boring emotions," Missy gestured with her hands. "Ready to be re-downloaded. Meanwhile, you upgrade the bodies. Upload the mind, upgrade the body. Cybermen from cyberspace. Now, why has no-one ever thought of that before?"

"Who are you?" the Doctor demanded.

"You should know who I am, I thought I would leave an iconic memory in your lives," Missy said, rather put out she was being proven wrong.

"I don't recall sadistic Mary Poppins in my life," Minerva spat.

"Oh, way to ruin a surprise," Missy dramatically sighed at them then placed a hand over her chest. "Two hearts."

It didn't register.

"Two...hearts…" Missy stepped forwards but the two then took the same step backwards.

"You're a Time Lord," the Doctor put the pieces together after glancing up at the sphere again.

"Time Lady, please, I'm old-fashioned."

" _Which_ Time Lady?"

"The one you abandoned, Doctor. The one you left for dead. Didn't you ever think I'd find my way back?"

Liv shook her head. "I'm getting Clara!" and she disappeared.

"I've had enough of this!" Minerva raised her hands, declaring herself out of the conversation.

"Oh right, go away, run away like the cowards the Moontsays are known for."

A deep fury came over Minerva for those words. "Excuse me?"

"Weak," Missy began again, moving for them in slow steps. "Poor. Out of control. Bothersome. Emotional fools. Fragile." Minerva trembled with her fury. But the final word drove it home. " _Abominations_ ," Missy stopped a couple inches from her.

The Doctor practically lunged on Minerva to stop her before she actually killed Missy. While Missy laughed, the Doctor fought to bring Minerva back with him, intending on getting the hell out of there.

"Don't bother with the lift!" Missy called, still laughing.

"Stairs!" the Doctor shouted.

"You let me go!" Minerva thrashed against him, but her heels went off the floor with his strength pulling her up. "I'll have her thrown into the dungeon! Last Time Lady my a-"

"Minerva! _Control_ yourself!" the Doctor begged.

"I will _never_ allow myself to be insulted by your idiotic species!"

"Yes, that's fine!" the Doctor agreed. He had no problem with that, but right now he just wanted to get her out safe and sound. He hoped Liv was already getting Clara out too. He managed to sonic the nearest door to the stairs and pulled Minerva out...of St. Paul's Cathedral?

Even Minerva stopped her thrashing to stare at the calm city in front of them. Humans were bustling about like normal.

"Oh, dear, Doctor. Didn't you realise where you were?" Missy appeared behind them.

Minerva whipped her head at the woman, breathing heavily from her small fight against the Doctor.

The Doctor pulled Minerva down the steps. "Get away from here! All of you, run!" he called to the nearest humans.

Cybermen were beginning to march out of the Cathedral.

"Go! Get out of here!" Minerva joined in on the rescue. "Run away!"

But no one listened, especially when Missy came by.

"I'm sorry, everyone. Another ranting Scotsman in the street - that and his pitiful American. I had no idea there was a match on."

"I am gonna throw you in a dungeon!" Minerva turned to her.

"Stop shouting, love. Stop making a fuss," Missy motioned with one hand, all too calm. "It's too late. All the graves of planet Earth are about to give birth. You know the key strategic weakness of the human race? The dead outnumber the living."

"Who the hell _are_ you?" the Doctor came fast and got in front of Minerva.

"Oh, you know who I am. I'm Missy."

"Who's Missy?"

Missy sighed. "Please, try to keep up. Short for Mistress." And still nothing. With a smirk, she leaned closer and whispered. "Well, I couldn't very well keep calling myself the Master, now could I?"

Missy truly loved the reactions from the two afterwards. It had been just what she'd imagined.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Here we go...next chapter's the last one! Yah ready? ;)


	12. After All This Time

Missy was delighted to see all 'her' Cybermen infiltrating the city at every corner, especially when no one was taking in the exact danger they were in. "Look at them! My boys."

"Cybermen in broad daylight? You think people won't notice?" the Doctor questioned and looked out to see for himself.

Missy unpinned her hat and left it at the feet of a Cyberman. "Photos with the big metal men, one pound!" she called out to the clueless humans. Missy swirled to the Doctor and Minerva. "New York. Paris. Rome. Marrakesh. Brisbane. Glasgow. Everywhere. Anywhere. Me and my boys. We're going viral."

"Oh no, no, no," Minerva ran a hand through her short hair. Of course the humans wouldn't find the Cybermen as a threat until they actually attacked.

Missy returned to them with a smart phone just to show them both how 'viral' indeed they had become.

"Would you like me to take a picture?" a new woman's voice asked, Osgood. "Sorry, selfies are never as good, are they? And you're having a lovely moment. Hang on!" she snatched Missy's phone right from her hand and at the same time Minerva grasped Missy's arm.

"Ouch," Missy scrunched her nose as she felt a dreadful cold right where Minerva's hand was placed.

"Oops," Minerva spat, not the least bit apologetic. Her heart was beating wildly and not out of fear but of _anger_. She had long lost the fear she had for the Master and any other Time Lord. She was not the same Moontsay they had come to know so many centuries ago and she would make sure Missy understood that.

"Nice bow tie," the Doctor passively remarked to Osgood's new choice of attire that included a small, red bow tie.

"Bow ties are cool," Osgood smiled and raised the phone. "Big smiles, and now!" her voice had become louder, like an order.

Soldiers emerged from nearby buildings. "Move, move, move! Stand by. Surround target. Hold back!"

Kate Stewart appeared as well and walked up to the small group. "Afternoon," she greeted in her soft voice. "You've picked a lovely day for it. My, don't you look shiny," she admired the Doctor's and Minerva's new appearances. "Haircut?"

"Bit of a trim," went both who then shared a small smile with each other.

"Eugh," Missy looked to the side.

"The woman?" Kate laid eyes on Missy.

"Yes, ma'am," a soldier came up with another one who took Missy into custody.

"Kate Stewart," the woman then addressed the series of Cybermen. "Divorcee, mother of two, keen gardener, outstanding bridge player. Also Chief Scientific Officer, Unified Intelligence Taskforce, who currently have you surrounded."

"Human weaponry is not effective against Cyber technology," one Cyberman responded.

"Sorry, you left this behind on one of your previous attempts," Kate responded and threw down an old version of a Cyberman head. "So now that I have your attention, welcome to the only planet in the universe where we get to say this. He's on the payroll."

"Am I?" the Doctor was surprised to hear, but curious nonetheless.

"Well, technically."

"How much?"

"Probably not more than what she makes," Kate nodded to Minerva.

"Well," Minerva smirked, "What can I say? Being a Queen does pay well."

"Any questions?" Kate called to the Cybermen.

The answer came in the form of all Cybermen thumping a blue disc on their chests followed by stamps on the ground. Small engines emerged from their feet and just like that they zoomed into the sky.

Osgood's eyes widened when the cathedral's rooftop dome peeled back like an orange. "Oh, my God! Is it supposed to do that? Is that new?"

"No, no, I'm sure that's what was meant to happen," Minerva shot her an irritated look.

Kate stared at the cathedral as more Cybermen flew out. "There's going to be mass panic. Everyone in London can see that."

"Everyone in London just clapped and went whee. Hush, I'm trying to count," the Doctor squinted his eyes at the Cybermen in the sky.

"Eighty seven, I think," Osgood guessed. "OCD."

"Ninety one," Missy smirk and added, "Queen of Evil."

"Queen of _nothing_!" Minerva couldn't help spat again.

"Jealous?" Missy's smirk widened.

"No because in a bit I'll have you in my dungeon."

"How could Saint Paul's be full of ninety one Cybermen and nobody noticed?" Kate clapped her hands on her sides, frustrated.

"Dimensional engineering. One space folded inside another," the Doctor explained. "Bigger on the inside. Easy if you're a Time Lord."

"Mostly deploying south, a smaller number east," Osgood reported.

"Yep, but one straight up."

"So ninety one isn't a coincidence?"

"It never is," Minerva shook her head. The Doctor reached over and took Osgood's phone which was really Missy's.

"Osgood? Ninety one. Explain," Kate ordered.

"Ninety one areas of significant population density in the British Isles."

"That's one Cyberman for every city and major town," Minerva said slowly, just making the realization herself. "It's happening everywhere, all over the world, right now."

"Sweet planet, this. I think I might keep it," Missy said so kindly.

"One Cyberman per city. What could they hope to accomplish?" Kate failed to understand just like the others.

"Doctor!" Osgood pointed to the lone Cyberman that had flown upwards. It detonated itself.

"Has it exploded?" Kate frowned.

"More than that," Missy's voice drew them all in. "Cybermen don't just blow themselves up for no good reason, dear. They're not human."

"So if it's not exploding…" Minerva began.

"What's it doing?" the Doctor finished.

"Pollinating. Falling like rain into the cracks of the Earth. The dead are coming home, Doctor. All shiny and new. In twenty four hours the human race as you know it will cease to exist."

"We're going to see about that," Minerva left it clear this wasn't going to be an easy battle for Missy to win.

"Is that a challenge snowflake pr-"

"If you finish that goddamn name-" but Minerva didn't hear Missy finish it because the latter was injected a sedative that knocked her out.

"No. No, no, no, no, I need to talk to her! I need her awake!" the Doctor scolded the others, but no one flinched. He pulled Minerva to his side, knowing how hard it was for her to be face to face with...well, her killer.

"It's fine, you'll be going where she's going," Kate motioned the two to begin walking with them.

"What? No way," Minerva frowned.

"We'll sedate you if we have to," Kate was blunt and told the truth.

"Fine," the Doctor agreed. "But you have to watch the graveyards. It's site zero for massive awakening."

Kate agreed and led the way.

The Doctor had Minerva close with him as they followed. ' _Kaeya, I want you to go back to the Monsoon and stay there_.'

Minerva wasn't sure if she'd heard right in her mind, but when she looked up to the Doctor and saw his firm face she knew he'd actually said it. _'I'm not going anywhere. My family's here too._ '

' _I know, I **know** seeing...Missy...is difficult for you. I don't...I don't want you near her…._ '

' _I'm not scared,_ ' Minerva gave a small shake of her head so that no one around them would notice. _'This isn't the Valiant. I'm not that human Minerva you met anymore. And I am most certainly not afraid to hurt her this time. Question here is are you okay with that?'_

The question startled the Doctor. Minerva just smiled.

' _I know that this person was someone very close to you. So I have to ask you if you would reprimand me, be against me, if I had to strike her first._ '

' _You? Or Missy?_ ' a smile spread across the Doctor. ' _That's not even a question.'_ He set a small kiss on her hair. Minerva was relieved, silently, to see him so easily make that decision.

~ 0 ~

Quite dejectedly, the Doctor and Minerva watched soldiers hoist their TARDIS into the air to be loaded onto the jet they were meant to be boarding any minute now.

"Remind me again why we had to take the long road here?" Minerva raised her eyebrows at Kate once the woman approached them.

"I'm sorry. In the event of an alien incursion on this scale, protocols are in place. Your co-operation is to be ensured and your unreliability assumed. You have a history."

"Right, fine, I get that...for _him_ ," Minerva pointed at the Doctor with a thumb. "But why me? I do run an entire planet, you know."

Kate smiled. It faded however when she saw Missy being wheeled out on a box trolley, still unconscious. "Who is she?"

"My murderer and his ex best friend," Minerva answered before the Doctor could. "Right?"

"Oh absolutely," went the Doctor. "Now where's Clara?"

"Clara Oswald, your assistant?" Kate confirmed.

"Our family. She was with us in Saint Paul's."

"The team's still on site but they've been unable to gain access to the building. However, your...sister…" Kate said slowly for Minerva, still a bit confused on Liv, "...did appear to one of my men. Clara is doing her best to stay alive."

"If we taught her good I'm sure she will," Minerva said more for hers and the Doctor's benefit. "But we still want her here with us."

"Then give the order," Kate gestured to the awaiting jet. "As soon as you're on board Boat One your word is law. Quite literally."

"Well then, Doctor, get going," Minerva motioned for him to start walking.

Without much options, the Doctor started for the airplane. He took Minerva by the hand and went up the staircase leading up to the plane. Inside they found a long conference table with chairs around it. Monitors bleeped in the room.

"Where are we going?" the Doctor asked after a moment. "Cloudbase?"

"You mean the Valiant?" Kate asked.

"Oh hell no," they heard Minerva mumble. All eyes turned on her. "I can handle anything you want, throw me at Missy if you'd like but nothing will make me step foot in that horrendous ship."

The Doctor nodded beside her.

"Too conspicuous," Kate reassured her they weren't going near the ship. "We need your location concealed, not advertised. From now on you're a moving target."

The Doctor moved along the room, stopping by a portrait of a familiar man. "Ah, I see you're bringing Daddy along, too. That's very sweet."

An Army Officer stopped just beside and saluted the Doctor. "Sir."

"Oh, don't do that," the Doctor shook his head and heard the small laugh of his wife behind. "You look like you're self-concussing, which would explain all of military history, now I think about it."

"Colonel Ahmed, sir. Privileged to meet you."

"Love your outfit, Colonel Ahmed. Are you in the Scouts? Are you a Man Scout? I didn't know they had those."

Deciding the conversation was over, the Doctor walked away. He came up to the sideboard to collect a drink.

Kate moved over to the comm. system to speak into the cockpit. "The President is on board."

"Mind you, me and Sylvia Anderson, you've never seen a foxtrot like it," the Doctor turned back. "Hang on a second. The President? We don't want Americans bobbing around the place. They'll only start praying."

"Ahem," Minerva's sharp voice made him wince.

"Not the President of America, sir. The President of Earth," Ahmed rectified for them.

"There isn't one," the Doctor flatly said and pulled a seat out for Minerva and then himself. He offered her his cup of coffee but she shook her head at it.

"There is now," Ahmed said, slightly excited.

"The incursion protocols have been agreed internationally," Kate began to explain, coming up to the other end of the table and placing her hands on it. "In the event of full-scale invasion, an Earth President is inducted immediately, with complete authority over every nation state. There was only one practical candidate - well," she amended, "There was two but she voted for you."

The Doctor let the clump of sugar he was holding over his cup drop unceremoniously. He was staring at Minerva, utterly shocked.

The blonde just shrugged. "I thought it was fair," she argued. "I get to be Queen and you get to be President."

"What the…"

"Don't be mad, dear," Minerva reached for his hand. "I really don't need that today."

"So long as you're on this plane, you're the Commander in Chief of every army on Earth," Kate called them again, specifically for the Doctor. "Every world leader is currently awaiting your instructions. You are the Chief Executive Officer of the human race. Any questions?"

Gaping, the Doctor still stared only at Minerva.

"Now you know how it feels to be King - oops, President," Minerva barely contained her smirk.

~ 0 ~

In the cargo part of the ship, Osgood worked breaking apart Missy's cellular-like device in hopes of finding important information. Not too far from her, Missy was still strapped to the trolley. And just behind her was the TARDIS.

When Missy woke up, she found the Doctor staring right at her. Beside him was Minerva, close to daggering with just a look.

"Why are you still alive?"

"You saved me."

"I saved Gallifrey."

"Yes, Gallifrey too, I suppose," Missy gave a casual shrug. "There's always collateral damage with you and me. It's our Paris."

"Gallifrey's lost in another dimension."

A tiny smirk nearly made it to Missy's lips. "Yes and no."

"Meaning?"

"Yes, it's in another dimension. No, it's not lost."

"And let me guess," Minerva finally spoke up, figuring Missy was about to go against the Doctor any moment now, "You're not gonna tell us."

"Now why would I ever tell _you_ something?"

Minerva rolled her eyes. "Yes, fine. Why come back, though?"

"Scared?" Missy taunted but Minerva didn't falter in the least.

"Of you? In your dreams. If I had to I would kill you, less than a second."

Missy's lips stretched into a smirk, and she laughed. "You don't even see it, do you?" she asked, but neither Minerva nor the Doctor understood which only added to Missy's joy. "I am going to enjoy unmasking you to the Doctor."

"What are you talking about?" Minerva narrowed her eyes, letting the Doctor slightly pull her back a bit.

"You'll know, I promise," Missy said.

"C'mon," the Doctor thought it was best to keep them apart and turned Minerva for Osgood's desk.

"Mister President, sir, we're ready for you up here," Ahmed's voice came through the comm. System.

"Remember all those years when all you wanted to do was to rule the world?" the Doctor mumbled before answering in the comms. "On my way."

"Now what are you up to, Osgood?" Minerva decided it was better to focus on anything but Missy until she had no choice.

"Oh, er, it's her little device thingy. I thought there might be useful information on it. Who is she?"

"You'd never believe us if we told you," the Doctor joined them.

Osgood's eyes flickered to Missy then back to them. "Cos I thought she might be the Master, regenerated into female form? Your childhood friend, responsible for a number of previous incursions."

"My murder," Minerva added. "Feel free to add that to the record. In case I strike first."

"We do have files on all our ex-prime ministers. She wasn't even the worst," Osgood put down her tools. "Doctor, there's something nobody's talking about."

"Which is?"

"The clouds caused by the exploding Cybermen, they haven't dispersed. They're still there. In fact, they've expanded and are covering almost all the land masses. We're all looking at the graveyards. Maybe we should be looking up? What do you think?"

The Doctor was obviously impressed and after a silent look with his wife, he answered with another question. "All of time and space?"

"Sorry?" Osgood blinked.

"Just something for your bucket list," Minerva smiled and walked away with the Doctor.

~ 0 ~

Kate read off the latest news to the Doctor, and Minerva, from a tablet in the conference room. "We've done heat scans of some of the cemeteries and, in each case only a handful of Cybermen have so far emerged. But every individual burial site is active."

"Active?" Ahmed repeated slowly.

"She means _hatching_ ," Minerva corrected.

Kate nodded. "More are coming. Potentially millions."

"So the rain caused all that in just a few hours?" Ahmed glanced out the window.

"It wasn't rain, Man Scout. It was pollen," the Doctor rectified. "Cyber-pollen. Every tiny particle of a Cyberman contains the plans to make another Cyberman. All it has to do is to make a contact with compatible living organic matter and bang! Full conversion. But if they have learned how to convert the dead."

Minerva turned her chair to the nearest monitor holding Missy. "And so that's what she was doing. That's what 3W was for. She creates an all-new paranoia among the super-rich about dying. She exploits the wealth and the mortal remains of selected people so she can create a whole new race of Cybermen. Kind of clever if you think about it but also so like her," Minerva rolled her eyes.

"Cybermen who can recruit away your guns, Man Scout, it's all over," the Doctor waved a hand. "How can you win a war against an enemy that can weaponise the dead?"

"They're not attacking, apart from isolated incidents. They're just wandering about," Ahmed reminded them of the last report.

"You can't expect a newborn to just get up and start firing," Minerva admonished.

"Why were you there this morning? Why were you already attacking?" the Doctor thought back to how easily Osgood and Kate had appeared back at the cathedral and how... _coordinated_ they were to attack.

"Been investigating 3W for a while, then we got a tip-off," Kate shrugged.

"From a woman with a Scottish accent," added Ahmed, now realizing who the woman really was.

"Can't play to the gallery unless there's a gallery, and here I am," the Doctor mumbled.

"Oh I'm gonna shoot her," Minerva glanced back at the monitor to see Missy sticking out her tongue at them, or her, who knew.

"Dead bodies don't have minds, of course, but she's been upgrading dying minds to a hard drive for a long time," the Doctor thought. "So she upgrades the hardware, and then she updates the software."

Kate gave him a look. "What do you mean, a long time? How long?"

"Well, she must have a Tardis somewhere, so as long as she likes. The past, the future-"

"How long, Doctor?"

"Well," Minerva leaned forwards on the table, "Depends. How long has the human race had a concept of an afterlife?"

"Turns out the afterlife is real, and it's emptying," the Doctor rubbed his forehead, already thinking of the massive numbers that were about to be recruited. "Every graveyard on planet Earth is about to burst its banks."

~ 0 ~

Clara didn't know whether to count herself lucky she'd somehow made it out of the cathedral _alive_ or to start saying goodbye now that she was in a the local cemetery where dozens of Cybermen were bursting from tombstones and mausoleums. For the moment, it appeared they weren't taking an interest in her, but that didn't stop Liv from worrying.

"We have to find the Doctor and Minerva," the blonde held Clara's hand.

"Thought about it…" Clara said quietly, too engulfed with the sight before thek to worry where their friends were.

"Oh my God," Liv's eyes widened. "Do you think...do you think my body is like that too?"

It took Clara a minute to figure out Liv was talking about her actual human body that was buried somewhere in San Diego. Clara immediately looked out to the Cybermen again, now unable to stop thinking about it too.

"They have my body up and running...without my permission," Liv was close to anger. "Because...because let's face it. Cybermen are appearing from all ages. They took my body...and they converted it to a _Cyberman_."

Clara didn't have any words of condolences , she just had herself. She gave Liv's hand a tight squeeze and just let her know that she wasn't alone.

~0~

Kate grew tired of seeing the Doctor go from one place to another in the conference room. He was like a child refusing to sit still. "Mister President, you need to get back in your seat."

"I don't like being the president," the Doctor scowled. "People keep saluting. I'm never going to salute back."

Minerva sat perfectly comfortable at the conference table, looking amused at him. "I would be lying if 60% of my reason to vote for you didn't spring from wanting to watch this one moment."

The Doctor swiped a lily off a vase then turned around to meet his wife's smirk. "You're awful."

"I am," Minerva was close to laughing then, just to bug him even more, she saluted. Although rather annoyed, he walked over and handed her the lily. "Where's my salute?" she teasingly asked afterwards.

"Do you know, that was always my dad's big ambition, to get you to salute him just once," Kate remarked, although now seeing he didn't even want to salute his own wife she guessed it would have been even harder for her father.

"He should've asked," the Doctor easily said back, although his eyes landed on the window.

"Hello?" Minerva waved a hand to signify she was still waiting for her salute.

 _'Bit cheeky aren't we_?' went the Doctor in her mind.

 _'My murderer is on the same plane. Give me a break,'_ Minerva smirked.

For Kate, it appeared like the Doctor had remained staring at the windows behind her. "Doctor, what are you looking at?" she followed his gaze to the windows but saw nothing but gloomy skies.

"The clouds. Still there. So what else have they got?"

But then a metal face appeared at the porthole, scaring to death Kate

"Oh, dear Lord!"

The Doctor yanked Minerva off her chair, protectively pulling her to him. "There's a Cyberman out there on the fuselage. But on the plus side, it's not turbulence."

Minerva glanced at the monitor and cursed herself for being too slow. "Doctor, she's out! And I doubt anyone let her out!"

"What's it doing? Where did it go?" Ahmed had watched the Cyberman disappear from outside. "What can one Cyberman do to a plane?"

"I get the feeling it's not just one Cyberman," Minerva mumbled and allowed the Doctor to walk her out of the room, or sprint.

~0~

The first thing the Doctor and Minerva saw in the cargo room/laboratory was the like of ashes on the ground with broken spectacles. Osgood.

Minerva gaped at the sight and only looked up when they heard steps across them. Missy was coming out from behind the TARDIS.

"Oh, she was really scared. It's classic," Missy laughed. "Have you got any more friends I can play with?"

~0~

Clara knew that she hadn't made it to the cemetery in her own. Liv told her that a Cyberman brought her over without so much of a threat. So when she saw one Cyberman out of the fest just staring at her, she knew it must have been the Cyberman that brought her.

She ran over till she stood in front of it. "Are you the one that brought me here?"

"Affirmative."

"Yup, that's the one," Liv curiously eyed the Cyberman. It clutched onto a small piece of paper in its hand.

"So you know who I am, right?" Clara asked.

"You are not the Doctor."

"Of course I'm not the Doctor. I was lying to stay alive," and for some reason Clara didn't feel like she needed to lie. "But how do I know so much about him?"

"You are his associate."

"No, I'm not. I'm not his associate. I'm his family," Clara argued back. "Have you got any sort of Cyber-Internet in there because, really, you should look it up. Look up what happens to you if you harm me."

"Where is the Doctor?"

"What, you think I would give up the Doctor or Minerva? Don't be daft. I would never, ever, give them up, because they are my _family_. He and Minerva are the closest people to me in this whole world. They are the people I will always forgive, always trust. The people I would never, ever lie to."

But behind Liv was studying the Cyberman silently. There was something off about it, from the very start of it. No Cyberman saves a human and continued to converse with her. Like an instinct, the Cyberman pointed its weapon at Clara but almost immediately it shook and instead it removed the face plate.

Clara shuddered a breath. " _Danny_?"

Danny dropped the paper he was clutching and spoke in a near shaking voice, something that didn't go unnoticed by Liv. "Danny Pink is dead. Help me."

"Oh, my God. Danny-"

"Help me."

"Danny, I am so sorry-"

"Help me. I need you to do something for me. I can't do it myself." Danny then took off the cover off his chest disc and revealed the emotional inhibitor inside.

"What is that?" Clara stated at the device doubtfully.

"It's the emotion center of a Cyberman," Liv said slowly, eyes trailing up to Danny's face. "See a Cyberman isn't meant to have emotions. They're machines. Robots. But you didn't have it off, did you?" she asked Danny. "You can still _feel_." That's why he saved Clara, that's why he brought her to the cemetery. He still remembered everything of his human life.

"I need you to switch it on," Danny's voice shook. "Please. I don't want to feel like this."

~0~

The plane was rocking rather violently, having all of its passengers trying desperately hang onto something. Missy, however, was just enjoying the 'fun' ride.

"Quit laughing!" Minerva ordered.

"Oh, there she goes again!" Missy flapped an arm over her head. "Snowflake Princess, throwing orders here and there!"

"Stop it!" the Doctor went next.

Missy's lips curled up in a knowing smile. "And there he goes, blind!" she rolled her eyes. "You know, I've been up and down your timeline, meeting all those silly people who died to keep you alive, both of you! And you know what I worked out? What you so blindly-" she pointed at the Doctor, "-have missed for centuries now?"

"Stop talking you lunatic!" Minerva frantically yelled.

"She-" Missy pointed at her, "-is just like me now! You've fashioned her into what she's become now."

"Oh, and now it begins," Missy gestured to the TARDIS where the phone had begun to ring. "Doctor, I do believe you're on call. Miss Oswald expects?"

The Doctor ran to the TARDIS with Minerva right behind him. "Clara!?"

"Doctor. I'm with Danny-"

The Doctor knew Clara was in pain but now was not the moment for her to make up lies. "Danny's dead, Clara."

"Not yet. Not quite. But he wants to be."

"Doctor, if Danny was dead then his body must have come back as a Cyberman," Minerva whispered next to him.

"He's a Cyberman," Clara confirmed without knowing it. "Doctor, Danny's a Cyberman. And he's crying. Doctor, he feels it. He's crying. I need to know how to turn on the, uh, the inhibitor. It can delete emotion or something."

"I know what it does. If you turn it on he'll become a Cyberman!" the Doctor cut her off.

"He's already a Cyberman-"

"Not yet, he isn't."

"He's hurting because I hurt him and he wants it to stop," Clara's voice shook with terrible guilt.

"Stop the pain and he'll kill you!"

"Look, are you going to help me, because I can't do this alone. Liv doesn't know how either."

"We're not going to help you commit suicide!" the Doctor practically shouted.

"Look, the Tardis can home in on this call, right? Either you help me, or you leave me alone."

"She's not gonna listen," Minerva feared that Clara's thoughts were clouded by her pain.

"Clara? Clara, no-" but the Doctor stopped when he heard the line go off. On the other side, Clara had thrown her phone away.

"Doctor! Minerva!" Kate came in, wobbling from the plane. "The Cybermen are in. The plane's going down!"

"Oh, great. It's the daughter one. Do you like her? I like her," Missy cast a very sadistic glance at Kate.

"Don't you dare!" Minerva moved to take her down when Missy took control of the plane's state and veered it sharply.

The Doctor reached out for Minerva and clamped her onto a cargo strap with him. Kate frantically did the same. Missy didn't stop there and opened up the cargo hatch and immediately sucked Kate out.

"Why did you do that?" Minerva screamed. "You didn't have to do that!"

"Oh, don't be so selfish. I'm going to miss her, too," Missy swayed her head. "In fact, you know what? Just for that, I'm leaving." She spoke into her device that apparently served as a comm. "Boys, blow up this plane and, I don't know, Belgium, yeah? Kill some Belgians. Might as well. They're not even French. Byeeee!" and she teleported away.

"Doctor!" Minerva struggled to look up at him beside her. "Just...follow my lead!" she seized his hand and the two jumped out.

He moved his hand onto hers. ' _Trust me_? _'_

Minerva nodded her head, face scrunched from all the wind blowing in the room. She shut her eyes as soon as the Doctor took a free-fall dive with her.

~0~

Liv nervously watched Clara fiddle with Danny's inhibitor. Although she was almost sure that 80% of nervousness was from Clara. She thanked luck that the trusty TARDIS materialized across them.

"Clara, don't!" the Doctor ran out first. Minerva closely followed but she was still trying to process the fact they'd survived a freefall. Never had she loved more the box of wonders than at that moment.

Clara did not falter in her determination. "Help me."

"If you do what you're trying to do, if you succeed, he will snap you!"

"No-"

"Then he will step over your broken body and break another and another and another. He will never stop!"

"I will not harm her," Danny argued.

"P E. P E. P E. I had a friend once! We ran together when I was little. And I thought we were the same. But when we grew up, we weren't. Now, she's trying to tear the world apart, and I can't run fast enough to hold it together." The Doctor walked up to Danny and put a hand over the metal chest disc. "The difference is this. Pain is a gift. Without the capacity for pain, we can't feel the hurt we inflict."

"Are you telling me seriously, for real, that you can?"

"Of course I can."

"Then shame on you, Doctor."

Liv's eyes were drawn upwards into the dark, rumbling sky. "Can someone actually tell me what the plan is? Whether it's yours or the crazy woman. What is going on?"

"Danny, Danny, I need you to tell me. What are the clouds going to do? What is the plan?" the Doctor knew that out of any Cybermen in the cemetery Danny was the only way to figure it all out.

"How would I know?" asked Danny, sounding confused.

"You're part of a hive mind now. Presumably that's how you found Clara. Just look."

"I can't see much," Danny said after a moment.

"Look harder!"

Danny went straight face for a moment. His eyes briefly flickered to Clara. "Clara, watch this. This is who the Doctor is. Watch the blood-soaked old general in action." His eyes moved back to the Doctor. "I can't see properly, sir, because this needs activating. If you want to know what's coming, you have to switch it on. And didn't all of those beautiful speeches just disappear in the face of a tactical advantage? Sir."

The Doctor stepped backwards, seeing the point Danny was making and of course accepting it. There was danger, true danger at hand, and he wasn't going to waste in trying to make up a retaliation. "I need to know. I need to know!"

"Yes, you do," Danny went unsurprised.

"Give me the screwdriver," Clara extended a hand back for the Doctor.

"No." The Doctor remained put.

Minerva watched it all from behind and saw the desperation from both Clara and Danny. She hoped to God she wouldn't regret her stance. "Doctor, just do it. I think...I think we owe that much."

The Doctor met Danny's look before letting his sonic pass onto Clara.

"Typical officer. Got to keep those hands clean," Danny couldn't let it slide.

"Hey," Minerva pointed at him fast. "You are asking for this, don't forget that."

Clara took a deep breath in, her hand grasping the sonic. "Just point and think, yeah?"

"Yes…" the Doctor backtracked a bit.

"Okay," Clara pursed her lips, desperately trying to hold back her tears. "I wasn't very good at it, but I did love you."

"I love you too," Danny said for what he knew he would never again say.

"I'm never going to say that again." Liv's eyes filled with tears, but she knew they were Clara's. "I feel like I'm killing you," Clara's tears finally made it down _her_ face.

"I'm already dead. You're here this time at least," Danny said as consolation for both of them.

"Goodbye, Danny," Clara shuddered.

"Goodbye, Clara."

Clara then activated the sonic and saw instant results. Danny's face went completely blank and his entire posture turned rigid and straight. Clara turned off the sonic and, without hesitation, moved to him and hugged him.

"Clara, no! Step away! He's activating!" the Doctor nearly lost it. "Clara, step away now! Don't!" He successfully pulled Clara back but it would only last for a moment. "Danny. Danny, if you can hear me, if you're still there, what are the clouds going to do?"

"The rain will fall again. All humanity will die," this time Danny spoke monotonously.

"And rise again as Cybermen."

"Correct."

"How do we stop it?"

"We cannot be stopped."

Missy decided to make her reappearance and did so in Mary Poppins style, floating down with an umbrella above . "Oh, that was brilliant! Oh, I love the telly here, but did you see that? Oh, Clara, you poor thing. You must feel like death. Let me pop away the pain."

As soon as she pulled out her controller device, Minerva stalked over and snatched it right out of her hands. "You're gonna pay!" she promised.

"I'm just getting a bit carried away, aren't I?" Missy backtracked a bit, playful. "It's your friends, they're so more-ish. Hmm?"

Clara silently went back to hugging Danny. The Cyberman did no such harmful thing.

Missy smirked at Minerva who had yet to raise those glaring, blue eyes from her. "Oh, stop looking all cross-pants. I'm here to give your husband a gift."

"What gift?" the Doctor moved for them and gently brought Minerva back.

"The gift of sight," Missy meant to promise. She raised her arm wearing a bracelet and spoke into it. "Cyberdears!" all cybermen, except for one, straightened up in response. "Look at Mummy! Raise your arms. Lower your arms. Raise your right. Lower your right. Turn on the spot."

All Cybermen, so she thought, followed the orders like it was a Simon says game.

"You built an entire army…" Minerva looked around at the numbers.

"Oh, don't let those eyes dazzle," Missy glowered at her. "Because you see, Doctor, how she acts now, don't you?"

The Doctor didn't want to hear more rubbish from her, especially about his wife.

"Oh, c'mon!" Missy feigned a frustrated fit. "The power to slaughter whole worlds at a time, then make them do a safety briefing is at your fingertips! But whose?" her eyes flickered from the Doctor to Minerva. "Everyone who ever lived, man, woman and child, is now at your commands. An indestructible army to rage across the universe. One to match the one you've already built!" she made a gesture towards Minerva. "And the more they kill, the more they recruit. Here, catch one of you!" she tossed the bracelet over to the pair and laughed when Minerva caught it. "Of course _you_ would."

"All of this for what, exactly?" Minerva gritted her teeth. "You're not making sense!"

"Well of course the person with the problem is the last one to notice," Missy put her hands on her hips. "The lover is in the same boat. No, you would need someone on the outside to see it first...a friend. A friend who was never afraid to say the truth like it was. You've _changed_ Minerva. And what's even more delightful is to see _who_ changed you."

The Doctor's face hardened when Missy once again laid eyes on him. "Stop it!"

"Why?" Missy challenged in the next second. "Because it's an awful truth? Well let me tell you that it is nonetheless the _truth_. You've fashioned yourself a little soldier for a wife," she mocked him. "What's more? She turned out to be a hypocrite about it. You think _I'm_ awful? At least I don't go around parading myself to be a noble Queen. Well now here it is: an entire army that will fall under her command because that's who she is now."

"I would never!" Minerva fiercely defended herself from the bland accusations.

"But that's just it, Snowflake Princess. You've already become it. I've seen your past. I've seen you rage war against the Silence for a daughter. I've seen you fight against your own sister because you thought she was a threat. Who's next?" Minerva growled and moved forwards but the Doctor held her back again. "And there it is!" Missy clapped her hands, laughing.

But then Liv appeared in between them, furious than ever. "You did all this to prove a goddamn point? You let people die and violated their rights after death just to make up some crazy stories?

Missy smirked.

"You made a bad mistake lady," Liv suddenly declared, stepping back. "You forgot about me...and about Clara. You forgot about humans can do. Most importantly you forgot about _love_. Love is a promise."

They all followed Liv's gaze to Clara and Danny, the latter still hugging the former.

"I never got to experience it but thanks to Clara i get the jist," Liv smiled.

"Danny, catch!" Minerva didn't think twice before throwing the bracelet over to him.

"You didn't notice, did you?" the Doctor smiled, unable to believe he'd missed that too. "While you were doing all your silly orders, while you where showing off, the one soldier not obeying."

Missy was also in a state of shock. "No, that's wrong. That's impossible."

"The rain will not fall." Danny let go of Clara and put the control bracelet on.

"Oh?" Missy watched him come up to her. "Why won't it?"

"The clouds will burn."

"And who'll burn them?"

"I will burn them."

"How?"

"I will burn."

Missy rolled her eyes, not taking him serious. "One burning Cyberman is hardly going to save the planet."

"Correct." Danny raised his arm and spoke into the bracelet and had all the other Cybermen listening up. "Attention! This is not a good day. This is Earth's darkest hour. And look at you miserable lot. We are the Fallen. But today, we shall rise. The army of the dead will save the land of the living. This is not the order of a general, nor the whim of a lunatic."

"Excuse me?" Missy huffed.

"This is a promise. The promise of a soldier!" Danny's voice softened as he spoke to Clara for the last time. "You will sleep safe tonight."

Clara could only watch as he ignited his rocket boots and rose from the ground. All Cybermen followed and flew off into the sky, exploding. As they exploded, they pushed the clouds away until the sun was left to shine down.

"Hm, the clouds have all gone," Liv couldn't take her eyes off the sky for fear of it all reversing.

"Yes, burned up. Totally burnt. Burnt to nothing," the Doctor said but winced for Clara's sake. "Sorry."

"Ten zero eleven, zero zero by zero two," Missy suddenly said.

"What did you say?" the Doctor glared her way, thinking it was a backup plan now.

"The current coordinates of Gallifrey. It's returned to it's original location. Didn't you ever think to look?"

"Stop lying!" Minerva suddenly aimed Missy's device straight at her. "I am so sick of you lying and hurting my family!"

"And there it is," Missy didn't seem the least bit surprised. In fact, one could say she was almost waiting for it to happen.

"M-Minerva," the Doctor was shocked to see his wife so close to...well...killing.

"There we have it!" Missy began to clap. "Finally, she reveals herself. Don't you see Doctor? You've made this - you've made _her_."

"Shut up," ordered Minerva, gritting her teeth together, her finger just inches above the button.

"This entire time haven't you ever once stopped to see who you've become?" Missy asked, stepping forwards. "Last time we met you said you would never aim to kill."

"Times change."

"Ah, so it has," Missy's eyes flickered to the Doctor. "Do you see it now? Right before your very eyes? I have loved seeing the story unwrap. The lonesome Snowflake Princess meets the Doctor who slowly changes her. I've seen her at her worst. I've made sure you and her stayed together just so that you - Doctor - could see her in the end."

"The advert," Minerva suddenly remembered the Victorian advert that had led her and Clara to the Doctor while he was working through his regeneration. "That was…" she blinked rapidly, faltering for a minute, "...that was you?"

Missy smirked. "I've waited so patiently for the end of this story. Sweet Snowflake Princess what have you become?"

Minerva had never felt so scared in her life, and she'd been through much.

 _'Honestly Minerva I don't even know who you are anymore," Clara looked away, taking a breath. 'You changed for the worst.'_

Clara shifted under Minerva's glance, assuming she was remembering her outburst from the Moon incident. The realization, the connections, were finally being made and Minerva was not ready for it.

This regeneration, oh this regeneration...had really screwed with her mind. Or so she had blamed. Yes, the regeneration had totally changed her personality in a whole different way that had never appeared before. She was quicker to make assumptions and act on them, even if they weren't always most peaceful way. But before that, back to when the Ponds were in the TARDIS...she had changed. She killed Kovarian without hesitation, and even if it was in an alternate universe Minerva admitted she would do it all over again if she had the chance. Anyone who hurt her family would suffer by her hand. With Clara and Liv, she was prepared to do anything it took to keep Elias and the Doctor safe. That...that wasn't her, or it used to not be her.

 _Kaeya_ … she heard the Doctor's voice in her mind. She had blocked her entire mind off from him but not before he got a blip of all the emotions and feelings that were rushing through her.

Minerva felt out of place, weak. She lowered the device in her hand, missing Missy's widest smirk ever. "What have I become?" she whispered.

"Everything you never dreamed of," Missy answered for her, completely satisfied to see it all finally sink in.

"Enough!" the Doctor took Minerva into his arms, the blonde too lost in her thoughts to argue.

"No point in denying it Doctor," Missy laughed. "Sweet little Snowflake Pr - AH!" An energy bolt had fired from behind and got her.

Everyone gaped as a Cyberman, the last one, stood at a distance from them. It pointed to something, or someone, lying among the gravestones.

The group ran forwards and found none other than Kate Stewart lying on the ground.

"Kate!" the Doctor bent down beside the woman and checked for a pulse. "She's breathing! She's alive! She can't be here. She fell out of a plane. The Cyberman must have caught her."

Clara leaned down as she heard Kate mumbling things. "Doctor, she's talking about her dad."

The Doctor slowly got up and turned to the last of the Cybermen. "Of course. The Earth's darkest hour and mine. Where else would you be?" He straightened and gave the only salute he would ever give...to the spirit of Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge Stewart. "Thank you."

~ 0 ~

Clara was not expecting to see the Doctor and Minerva reappear so soon after her first call. It had been only two weeks since the Cybermen attack, and Danny's death, when Clara decided to finally call up her friends. She would have thought they would be late by months but it was only the next day. She smiled warmly when Elias pushed the coffee place's door open, or so he thought, for his parents. In reality the Doctor had pushed from above but let the toddler believe it was all him.

"I did it!" he cheered for himself then scurried over with his teddy bear in hand all the way to the table Clara was waiting at. Liv was standing right next to her, visible only to them. "Hi, Ca-yah," he greeted politely and started pulling on a chair on his own.

"Elias," Clara tried helping but the boy insisted he was going to do it himself. So she waited for his parents to join them. "Hi," she greeted them a bit nervously.

"Hello," the Doctor greeted back. Minerva smiled the best she could and sat down next to him. "We got your message. Is there news?" they assumed Clara wanted to talk about how Danny had ultimately survived in the end thanks to Missy's bracelet.

"Where's Danny?" Minerva made the assumption and looked around for the man.

Clara gulped. Liv put a hand on her shoulder, encouraging her to go on and tell them what happened. "He's not coming back. He, um...he sent back a child he accidentally shot while he was…" Clara made the gesture and the two understood.

"Clara, we're sorry," the Doctor said. Elias got up on his chair and pushed his teddy bear Roger to Clara as a way to comfort her.

"Thank you, El," Clara patted the bear's head. "I called you because I wanted to talk." She sighed and looked at Minerva. "I should have said it two weeks ago before you left but…"

"Clara…" Minerva could guess where this conversation was going and shook her head.

"You need to hear it," Clara reached for one of Minerva's hands. "Because Missy took it all out of context."

"You would think," Minerva bitterly smiled.

"She wasn't wrong about you changing, but she was wrong to what extent. You are not a bad person, and I hope to God my words never made you think that. It's like...it's like the Doctor once said," Clara smiled for a minute as she glanced at the man, "We all change. And it's good. We have to change."

"I agree," the Doctor looked at his wife, taking her other hand. "After all this time, it is impossible to be the same woman from the iced lake. You changed because you had to, because it was needed."

"But I…" Minerva tried to argue against it.

"Some of it was bad, but sometimes the only decisions to make are the worst ones. But still...someone has to make them," Clara reminded her. "Who better than a Queen with self control?"

"Mommy's the best," Elias proudly said and let himself sit back down on his chair.

Minerva let out a small laugh and took her hands out of the Doctor's and Clara's to clean some loose tears off her face.

"And the best sister," Liv added, laughing.

Clara was relieved to see that Minerva was letting herself feel better. It made her next words just a little easier to say without feeling the guilt she thought she would've if things had gone the other way. "There was another thing I wanted to talk to you both about. It's, um...it's about me...and...and Liv...and you."

"What is it?" the Doctor asked, wondering if they were in problems as well.

"I lost Danny... _three_ times," Clara struggled still to accept that. "And I...I need time to build myself up again. You know sometimes, when you're in the TARDIS, it feels like you're running away from problems...and this is one problem I don't want to run from. Danny deserves better than that. So I...want to stay away from travelling for a while. I want to process it, and...and let it sink in."

"You want to...leave the TARDIS?" Minerva summarized it just to confirm it was what they were hearing.

"No, Ca-yah," Elias shook his head, once more pushing himself to stand on his chair. "No go!"

"It's just for a while," Clara promised them all.

"You don't think I would ever stay away from you, do you?" Liv tested them out and smiled. "They'd have to lock me up."

Minerva began to smile at the use of her very words. "Same."

"It's just until I feel better," Clara promised again. "And-and Liv can go to the TARDIS any time she wants. You don't have to stop and mope because of me."

"Actually…" the Doctor took a breath in and glanced at Minerva, both thinking of the same thing, "...perhaps this works out for the best."

"What do you mean?" Clara made a face, just as confused as Liv was now.

"We've been thinking…" Minerva pointed between her and the Doctor, "...about Elias."

"That's me," Elias pointed at himself, despite not knowing what they were talking about.

"And we came up with a little plan," Minerva finished. "See, we've been worrying that with all our constant travelling Elias may not be benefiting like we want him to."

"We think Elias needs to start interacting more with other children," the Doctor simplified it before they rambled on trying to explain it.

"Oh," Clara blinked, instinctively looking to Elias who'd gotten more interested in his teddy bear.

"My grandfather says that Elias is developing at a faster rate psychologically than most Moontsay children," Minerva continued to explain, "And the Doctor agrees it's happening faster than most children of his people as well. We want to make sure he gets the best childhood experiences. He can't very well do that if he's never around children."

Clara and Liv stared at Elias who was now talking to himself and probably to Roger. It wasn't hard to agree with that. Elias was hardly ever around children, and when he was it was only for a couple of hours every once in a while. As a teacher, Clara knew that it was important for children to be around other children in order to understand the concept of a society, a community.

"We want to stop travelling for a while too," the Doctor finally admitted out loud. "Because Elias is the only of his species, we figure the best we can offer to him is a stable home on the Monsoon for a while. They share half of his genes there and so we'll be better able to record his growth."

"So you're...you're going to _live_ on the Monsoon?" Liv asked slowly, the idea sounding far too tetchy even for those two.

"For our son, we will," the Doctor nodded.

"But you've never been one to just stop travelling…" Clara couldn't help smile a little.

"Once, I did," the Doctor corrected. "When Minerva became a Moontsay again she had to stay far more time on the Monsoon. I stopped travelling for her then and I'll gladly do it again for our son."

"I'm proud," Clara was left to say. "And I hope it works out, then."

"It's not forever," Minerva warned for all of them.

"Just a vacation," Clara agreed.

"So...we're okay?" the Doctor needed to make sure before they had to go.

"Yes," both Clara and Liv answered at the same time, smiling as well.

It was a lot easier to say goodbye (for a while) if she knew that everyone had something they wanted to get done and overcome.

~ 0 ~

And so, when Minerva and the Doctor arrived on the Monsoon, it felt a lot less conflicting for them than they thought.

"Mommy, Daddy, my own bed?" Elias was hopeful as looked up between his parents. They all stood in the old bedroom set for Minerva and the Doctor, complete with the adjoined room that was Elias' nursery.

"You want your own bed now?" the Doctor repeated, fairly amused. "You think you're old enough for one?"

"No more crib," Elias shook his head, clutching his teddy bear as he started for the connecting door.

Minerva waited until Elias was far enough before she asked. "Are you okay?" The Doctor looked away, knowing exactly what the question was about. At his silence, Minerva turned to him, reaching to touch his face. "I know...I know the coordinates didn't match...so you don't have to lie to me. Not to me."

Because of course she knew the Doctor had gone off the first moment he had to see if the coordinates Missy gave were right and led to Gallifrey.

It had not.

"Doctor," Minerva gently turned his attention back to her. "I don't know how you see this place," she motioned to the area, "But I want you to know that this place can be another home for you."

The Doctor smiled at her, although he was still writhing with anger for Missy's last trick, he couldn't find it to be angry when he was with Minerva. "If you're here...then yes."

Minerva smiled.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

And bam! We're done! As I said before, I don't plan on doing the Christmas special of this season because I frankly just hated it. No reason to write it too when it wouldn't make sense for this story anyways. But, the next story has been posted and...it's called _**Tomorrow Will Be Another Day**_. Go give it a read!

Thanks for everyone who read and reviewed! It always means a lot! Hope the next story is even better for you! :)


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